The Houses ................................................ 38
The Houses ...................................................... 38 What Are Houses? ........................................... 39 Houses Are Three Dimensional ....................... 40 House Cusps .................................................... 41 Why Houses Are Important .............................. 42 The Meaning of the Twelve Houses ................. 44

How To Learn Astrology A Working System .......................................... 294 The Planets .................................................... 296 The Lights ...................................................... 297 The Sun.......................................................... 299 The Moon ....................................................... 300 The Major or External Planets ........................ 301 Mars ............................................................... 302 Jupiter ............................................................ 303 Saturn............................................................. 304 Putting It All Together ..................................... 305

The Inner is the Key to the Outer ........... 305
The Inner is the Key to the Outer ................... 306 Jupiter is the Life Path .................................... 307 Earth and the Inner Planets ............................ 308 The Earth/Sun ................................................ 309 The Key to Mars is Earth ................................ 310 The Key to Earth is Venus.............................. 311 The Key to Venus is Mercury ......................... 312 The Sun as Key .............................................. 313

My name is Michael Erlewine and I will be your guide through this course on astrology. As for my qualifications, I have been studying astrology for over forty years, and during that time have worked as a teacher, programmer, author, and counselor. You can read about my background elsewhere in this course, but right now let's get down to it. Astrology is ancient, probably as old as when man first measured time. It is present in some form in all countries and cultures, and always has been. In fact, the majority of the world's population uses astrology at the day-to-day level, and not just for entertainment, as we do here the West. Before we begin our study of astrology, it might be important to clear away two popular misconceptions about astrology.

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How To Learn Astrology

Celestial Influences One popular misconception about astrology is that the planets out there in the heavens cause events to happen down here on the earth. Professional astrologers that I have known, and I have known many, do not hold with these theories of "celestial influence," that planets somehow make things happen to us. Instead, modern astrologers see the heavens and the earth as one whole entity, interpenetrating, and sharing the same space and time, which in fact is the case. They do not see the various planetary configurations as causing events to happen here on earth, but rather see the earth (itself a planet) and all the other planets as interacting in the very same space, and as sharing whatever events are occurring. In other words, whatever events taking place out there in the heavens are also happening down here on earth. Neither is the cause of the other; both are happening simultaneously. The From Michael Erlewine

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How To Learn Astrology planetary configurations are just grand signatures (like writing in the sky), signs of events happening right here in our own lives. Both are the product of the same moment, one acted out in the heavens above, the other here on the Earth below. In other words, there is only one grand "play" or moment. The great drama enacted in the sky above is also acted out (in exact detail) here on Earth, and in the same moment. Another way to say this is that the Earth is part of the cosmos and shares in that cosmic moment. Astrologers tend to feel that all major cosmic events (eclipses, etc.) are interactive; they represent an activity also taking place within our self and consciousness.

Astrology Not a Matter of Faith A second misconception about astrology is that to be an astrologer, you have to somehow "believe" in astrology. Astrology is not a question of belief, any more than you

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How To Learn Astrology believe in psychology. It is not a question of belief, but one of use. I often find astrology useful in my life as a way of understanding who I am and what my life is about, plain and simple. I don't "believe" in astrology. I use it when I find it useful, and leave it alone, when I don't, like any other tool. Astrology is useful or it is not. In summary, astrology is a study of heavenly cycles and cosmic events as they are reflected in our earthly environment and vice versa -- a vast cosmic clock. Astrologers find the cosmic patterns revealed in the rhythmic motions of the planets useful in shedding light on the seeming helter-skelter of everyday life. Astrologers do study the sky writing in the heavens, but only to better live life here on the Earth.

What This Course Offers Welcome to a course on how to learn astrology online. My name is Michael Erlewine, and I will be your guide to

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How To Learn Astrology learning astrology. My background in this subject (teaching, readings, writing, programming) goes back some forty years. You can learn more about my involvement in astrology elsewhere on this site. Here I would like to give you an idea of what you need coming into this course and what you can expect to get out of it when you are done. As for requirements, there are none, other than your own interest in astrology. Previous knowledge of the subject is not assumed and you can learn at your own pace. If course outlines are too confining, you are free to jump around and sample whatever sections interest you. I have tried to make the sections short and use illustrations as much as possible, sometimes just because they are fun and look good. We will start at the beginning, working with concepts you already may (or may not) be familiar with, such as sun sign astrology, the signs, planets, and so forth. From there, we will learn the major elements of modern astrology, which include planets, signs, houses, aspects, and many other areas. Throughout this course, I have tried to offer you several approaches, since we don't all learn in the same way. Of course, you will be introduced to the concepts, keywords, phrases, and images that astrologers have studied by rote memory and used for centuries. For those of you who like the nuts and bolts approach, we also offer much of the astronomy that astrology is built upon. In addition, in most modules, you have the option of learning a more in-depth approach to astrology, one that explains not only how and why these concepts were created, but how to use them dynamically to develop

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How To Learn Astrology your own keywords - to better understand how these concepts work. Most important, we will study how to use astrology to interpret our own chart and those of our family and friends. This is the reason most of us study astrology in the first place: to better understand ourselves and our lives. And last, but not least, I have done my best to include where possible short sidebars on the esoteric meaning of astrology, the inner or hidden side of the subject.

Learn To Read Natal Charts Most of us study astrology, because it offers us another view to our self than what we have known up to that point. Astrology gives us a different perspective, a second opinion as to who we are and why it is we are here. It also can help us to maximize our talents, and to take a direction in life that will be successful and fulfilling.

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How To Learn Astrology Therefore, the first thing most of us want to do is to learn more about our natal chart, the personal astrological chart created for the moment or day we were born. As we study the various planets, signs, houses, and aspects (the basic building blocks of astrology), we will learn how they are configured in our own birth chart, our particular astrological signature. Learning about your own chart is perhaps the best place to begin. It is where most of us start out. We will spend the bulk of this beginning course introducing you to the basic elements of your natal chart, showing you how to use them.

Examine Your Relationships Once we have learned the basics of astrology, and have some idea of what our chart is like (who we are, astrologically), we will want to look at the charts of our family, friends, not-so-friends, not to mention those of celebrities, important events in our lives, and so on. From Michael Erlewine

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How To Learn Astrology When we have satisfied our thirst to know something about ourselves through astrology, the next thing most of us want to do is find out about our relationships, in particular if we are married or have a partner. If we are in a relationship, our well being depends on their well being, so what makes them tick is important to us. I have been doing astrological readings for some forty years now, and the most frequently asked question that comes up during a consultation is: what about my partner? Or, if they don't have a partner at that point, then they have a list of candidates to look at astrologically. At the very least, most people want some idea as to what kind of partner would be best for them. In this course, we will learn to examine relationships, astrologically.

Determine Career Moves Almost as popular as learning about relationships is learning about your career. Regardless of how much or how little vocational training you have at this point in From Michael Erlewine 24

How To Learn Astrology your life, what are you best suited for? Most clients I have worked with want to be put to some good use, to be used up in the most satisfying and successful way possible. Finding our path or road to success (making a living) is something each of us must do, before we can turn our attention to anything else - relationships, marriage, children, etc. If the wolf is at our door, that fact keeps us from enjoying many of the other areas of our life. Therefore, finding a career, your particular way through life (how to be successful) is key. In this course, we will learn several methods to determine career potential.

Living with Astrology As we shall see, astrology is not only a way to better understand who we are or what makes our neighbor tick, it is itself a way to live life - a path. In this course, we shall learn to become aware of the cycles of ups and downs we go through (and have always gone through) since the day we were born. From Michael Erlewine 25

How To Learn Astrology Our life is filled with cycles, even if we have not learned to recognize them in the world around us. The monthly solunar cycle of the phases of the Moon, the cycles of the various planets and their aspects, the daily cycle of day and night, etc., are all astrological cycles that we can learn to be aware of and to put to use.

Getting Your Forecast "Coming events cast their shadows" is an ancient astrological slogan. Looking ahead is something astrology is good at. In this beginning course, we will learn to use various astrological forecasting methods, like the daily transits of the inner planets, the monthly lunar cycle, solar cycles, and the long-term cycle of the planet Saturn. Whether it is today, tomorrow, or the next thirty years, astrology has something to show us worth considering. Astrology is perhaps most used for examining our self and life through the natal chart, as a way to better

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How To Learn Astrology understand who we are. But these same astrological principles that we find in our birth chart are not static. They can be used to look ahead as well as back at our birth chart. Once we understand our own personal chart, with its inclinations and disinclinations, we can scan ahead in time, looking for days and weeks when a similar astrological climate is available. We can look forward to these astrological events, just like we now look forward to celebrating our birthday. A birthday is, of course, an astrological event. In this course, we will learn to use astrological forecasting tools to help us pick the appropriate days for different kinds of events.

How Best to Use This Course As you can see, this course is laid out in modules. Each module has different sections, and each section has different topics. Once you select a section from a module, that section will be displayed on a separate page, with the text for the selected topic running down the right-hand side of your screen. However, the rest of From Michael Erlewine 27

How To Learn Astrology the topics in that section are still available to you, and are listed along the left-hand side of the screen. You can browse through all the topics, looking for those that most interest you at the moment. Each topic has an image or diagram to help illustrate what is being presented. If a topic does not warrant an image, you will get some image anyway - something fun to look at.

Astrology Now Astrology is ancient, probably as old as when man first measured time. It is present in all countries and all cultures, and always has been. In fact, the majority of the world's population uses astrology on a day-to-day basis, and not just for entertainment, as we do here the West. It would seem that almost everyone knows a little astrology, but I have found there are two popular misconceptions about astrology. The first is that the planets out there in the heavens cause events to happen down here on the earth. From Michael Erlewine 28

How To Learn Astrology Professional astrologers that I have known, and I have known many, do not hold with these theories of "celestial influence," that planets somehow make things happen to us. Instead, modern astrologers see the heavens and the earth as one whole entity, interpenetrating, and sharing the same space and time, which in fact is the case. They do not see the various planetary configurations as causing events to happen here on earth, but rather see the earth (itself a planet) and all the other planets as interacting in the very same space, and as sharing whatever events are occurring. In other words, whatever events taking place out there in the heavens are also happening down here on earth. Neither is the cause of the other; both are happening simultaneously. The planetary configurations are just grand signatures (like writing in the sky), signs of events happening right here in our own lives. Both are the product of the same moment, one acted out in the heavens above, the other here on the earth below. In other words, there is only one grand "play" or moment. The great drama enacted in the sky above is also acted out (in exact detail) here on Earth, and in the same moment. Another way to say this is that the Earth is part of the cosmos and shares in that cosmic moment. Astrologers tend to feel that all major cosmic events (eclipses, etc.) are interactive; they represent an activity also taking place within our self and consciousness. The second misconception is that to be an astrologer, you have to somehow "believe" in astrology. Astrology is not a question of belief, any more than you believe in psychology. It is not a question of belief, but one of use. I often find astrology useful in my life as a way of understanding who I am and what my life is about, plain and simple. I don't "believe" in astrology. I use it when I

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How To Learn Astrology find it useful, and leave it alone, when I don't, like any other tool. Astrology is useful or it is not, at any one time. In summary, astrology is a study of heavenly cycles and cosmic events as they are reflected in our earthly environment and vice versa -- a vast cosmic clock. Astrologers find the cosmic patterns revealed in the rhythmic motions of the planets useful in shedding light on the seeming helter-skelter of everyday life. Astrologers do study the writing in the heavens, but only to better live life here on the Earth.

The Study of Cycles For now, we could define Astrology as the study and practice of the cycles we can find present in our life. We study astrology and cycles to get a better idea as to what is happening to us in our lives, and we practice or put to use what we have found through our study and understanding. It will do no harm to start with the

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How To Learn Astrology dictionary definition of a cycle, although we will soon get much less formal. The Oxford Universal Dictionary states: Cycle : A circle or orbit in the heavens. A recurrent period in a definite period of years. A period in which a certain round of events or phenomena is completed, recurring in the same order in equal succeeding periods. A long, indefinite period, an age. A round, course or period through which anything runs to its completion. Etc. Therefore, a cycle is something that happens in our life again and again, and always in roughly the same form or format. Each of us cycles through periods of feeling good or normal and feeling bad and not-so-good. This is a cycle none of us seem to be able to avoid. We experience all kinds of cycles all the time. The first step is to be aware of that fact. Cycles are so important to the study of astrology that understanding what the dictionary has to say about them is but a start, and quite abstract at that. We must extend and deepen this understanding until we can see cycles not just as formal concepts, but as they are happening to us right now, and at work around us in our day-to-day life. Understanding these cycles in our lives may come slowly at first, but they are not that difficult see. It can take a little time to pick up on these ideas, much less to experience them happening in life around us, but it is well worth our effort. Without becoming aware of the cycles in our life that we have always been experiencing, and learning to recognize them as they occur, our understanding of cycles remains just an abstract idea a bunch of words. Let's go over this again.

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How To Learn Astrology

Life As Cycles Our life is filled with cycles. There are very short cycles, short cycles, long cycles, and very long cycles. All cycles repeat or return on themselves - happen again. Some examples of convenient-sized cycles that we can understand and measure with our mind include the cycle of our breath, the cycle of the seasons or year, and the cycle of day and night. The cycle of our heart beating is almost too small and fast for us to keep in mind. Smaller cycles yet include cellular cycles and, of course, atomic and sub-atomic cycles. These smaller cycles happen so often or fast that they are a blur to our mind. They fall through or beneath our awareness and make up the ground of our consciousness. When we look for long cycles, the planets provide good examples. We live through and experience the two-year cycle of the planet Mars, the 12-year Jupiter cycle, and even the 30-year Saturn cycle. However, many people don't live through the 84-year Uranus cycle, much less From Michael Erlewine 32

How To Learn Astrology the much longer cycles of Neptune and Pluto. While it is possible to grasp the meaning or import of these longer sized cycles with our mind, it can be very hard to bring home the meaning of these long cycles - to practice them consciously on a day-to-day level. Then there are cycles, like that of our Sun orbiting the Galactic Center, that take so many millions of years that, for our purposes, these cycles assume the proportions of a straight line. The portion of these larger size circles or cycles that we can witness or comprehend in our lifetime are so small as to appear like a straight line. We can't even see the curve of the line, much less the return. Thus our awareness is bounded on the one hand by the incessant hum of smaller cycles and the long-theme straight-lined cycles on the other. This leaves us with our awareness or consciousness of those cycles that we CAN recognize and appreciate. At this point, it is important for you to be beginning to understand that our entire life is cyclic. It is all cycles - nothing else. I will explain.

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How To Learn Astrology

The Tangle of Cycles For now, let's not even try to sort out the tangle of cycles in which we are embedded, and say "This is the Mars cycle doing this, that is the Jupiter cycle over there," and so on. It is quite enough to become aware that our moods, capabilities, attitudes, etc. come and go in a very regular manner. We can wake up minutes, hours, days, months, or years later and remember that we have been here before, have been going through a patch just like this. We may not have felt this good in years. These are cycles that we are seeing at these times, although they have been there all along. Many people have no awareness of the cycles they are going through each day or month. They may not even recognize that they don't feel very good or that they do feel very good, so embedded in the tangle of life's cycles are they. That is why the first step is to develop

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How To Learn Astrology an awareness of how you do feel and begin to be aware of the cycles in life.

The Straighter The Line This next concept is very difficult to grasp and realize, but I am going to put it out there anyway. You can work on it. Here it is: All existence (our very life) is maintained or keeps going through the sum total of the endless repeating cycles of which it is composed. It is even more direct than that and I am going to get very abstract for a just a moment. Our very existence is ONLY by virtue of our awareness of these cycles or circles. And now for the hard part: Everything IS or continues to exist only by returning, repeating, and restating itself. That is: everything we know and can have any awareness of has to somehow persist or exist long enough for us to experience it. The converse is also true.

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How To Learn Astrology That which does not re-instate or repeat itself (in other words, that from which we get no return) IS NOT for us. In fact, that which does not return for us (come to our awareness) comprises the sum total of our ignorance. We ignore it. It does not register. Our consciousness then, that which we are aware of, is made up of the endless returns or returning of cycles. Don't panic. I am going to try to make this clear. This is not an easy concept to grasp, but it is an essential one, and if you can get it, it will make your study of astrology much easier. Let me rephrase: Our consciousness, in other words, that which we are now aware of, is made up of whatever lasts (holds together) long enough for us to see and experience it. It persists, and we perceive it. Every thing we can see lasts long enough to restate itself, and these endless restatements or returns make up our conscious life, and only that. When we reach the 'point of no return' in any project, we abandon that direction. When something ceases to restate itself, to return on itself, it drops from our awareness and is forgotten. Everything that is only is by having the strength to last and exist. If it loses that strength, it no longer persists. Everything is only by returning. It is by the returns that we know anything. If we reach the point of no return on any subject, it is just that: the point where there is nothing coming back. It becomes like a straight line for us. This concept is difficult, so let's drop it for now and take another approach at the same material. Our entire life can be viewed as a process of investment and returns, giving and taking, and this process

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How To Learn Astrology endlessly repeats itself and can be studied in the form of cycles.

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House Systems

The Houses

The Houses We have all seen an astrological chart wheel, divided into twelve roughly equal pie-shaped sections, much like we would cut up an apple pie or pizza. These twelve sections are called the "Astrological Houses" or usually just the "houses." In each pie-shaped house, we might find one or more the planets or the Sun and the Moon. Just as someone might tell you they have the Sun in Aries, so they might also say that they have the Sun in the 11th house. And these twelve houses have specific meanings, just as the twelve zodiac signs do. The phrase "He's a Taurus," might just as easily be "He's a Second House Sun." We will learn about what the houses mean, but first it will help to know something about what houses are, and where they come from.

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House Systems

What Are Houses? First of all, houses are part of your horoscope, your natal birth chart. Simply put, the houses are a way to divide the space surrounding our birthplace into sections of space as seen from the place on Earth where we were born, that is: the space above us, the space below us, the space to the east of us, the space to the west of us, and so forth. We divide the entire space into twelve sections, like segments of an orange. Once we have divided the space around us, we look to see in what house or section of the sky the various heavenly bodies can be found, like the Sun, Moon, and planets, but also, the stars and any other astronomical body that might interest us. And since the planets are plotted in the zodiac signs, most house systems show where the particular house is (intersects) the band of the zodiac.

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House Systems

Houses Are Three Dimensional And although our two-dimension horoscope chart is flat, the sections of the houses are not. They are three dimensional, like the sections of an orange. Just Imagine walking outside under the night sky, with the stars and planets twinkling around you, and dividing up all that space, above you and below you (on the other side of the earth) into twelve sections or segments. From where you stand looking to the south would be the 10th House, behind you and to the north (and below you) would be the 4th House, at your left and to the east would be the First House, to your right and to the west would be the 7th House, and so on. That is what astrological houses are like.

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House Systems

House Cusps House cusps are determined by taking the 3dimensional house sections (remember the segments of an orange) and seeing where these lines intersect and cross the zodiac. Where these lines intersect is the cusp for each house, and that zodiac sign is said to be the "sign on the house cusp." In the diagram above, you can see the house segments and you can see the ring of the twelve zodiac signs. Where each segment cuts across the band of the zodiac, that sign is the sign on the house cusp. Although most house systems are divided into the familiar 12 houses, there are many different kinds of house systems, many slightly different ways of dividing up the space that surrounds us. Astrologers like to argue among themselves as to which house system is the best, and they agree to differ on this.

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House Systems Explaining the differences between the house systems is much too complicated to jump into here, so it will have to be enough here to know that, while there are different houses systems, they tend to agree on the main points, and are thus more the same, than they are different. You can feel confident using any of the major ones, until you get sophisticated enough to argue about the merits of one over another. So much for giving you an astronomical picture of what houses are. More important, is WHY the houses are important. What do they mean?

Why Houses Are Important If we can say that the planets tell us what general area of life we are working with, and that the signs of the zodiac the planets are in tell us something about the energy phase of that life area, then we could say that the houses tell us where all this activity is taking place. Let's take a simple example: I happen to have the Sun in Cancer in the 8th house. What does this mean? Let's parse this out. From Michael Erlewine 42

House Systems The Sun is the self, the self that each of us aspires to, and that we hope to (or can) become - whatever we look up to as our future. The zodiac sign Cancer says that this Sun can be very sensitive, that we are way down in there, and very much given to feeling and sensing things. We all know that Cancer sun signs love their homes. And last, the eighth house is the house of analysis (criticism), breaking things down, finding the kernels, and throwing out the chaff - getting at the heart of things. The eighth house is also the house of occult and esoteric study. Am I any of these things? I am. I have always worked out of my home, even when I had a company with 650 employees. I stayed home as much as humanly possible. As for sensitivity, my wife may have some other things to add, but I was sensitive enough to make my living as a musician for many years. As for being a critic, well, that's where I shine. I founded and built the All-Music Guide (and other entertainment guides), which today is the largest collection of music criticism on the planet. And I love esoteric and occult subjects and have studied them all my life. I hope to point out some esoteric astrology principles through this course. That is just one interpretation. Of course, there are many, many ways to interpret the "Sun in Cancer in the 8th House," and that is what makes astrology so fascinating. Once you understand the basic principles, and get in touch with your own inner energy, you will come up with interpretations that are purely "you," for astrology is an oracle. An oracle is something that speaks to us or through us. As we learn to become astrologers, we want to personally get out of the way and let the long tradition of astrology speak through us. It is more fun to read what is there than to try make astrology speak through our own personal bias.

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House Systems

The Meaning of the Twelve Houses Each of the twelve houses has a different meaning, and describes or points out a different area of our experience. Once we learn something about what each of these arenas of experience mean, we can begin reading astrological sentences like the one given above, "Sun in Cancer in the Eighth House." And best of all, the wheel of the twelve houses is a unified whole cycle (like the zodiac signs, the phases of the Moon, etc.), such that each house is a phase in that cycle leading to the next. When you learn about cycles and cycles' phases, you are automatically learning about the houses.

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House Systems

House Keywords
In this course, we have provided different levels of interpretations for house interpretations. Here are a list of keywords and phrases for the twelve houses, loosely organized into different themes. These may prove useful to help you key in on what each house means.

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House Systems

First House Keywords FIRST HOUSE Emergence Surface Appearance Facade Personality Self Initiative Activity

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House Systems

Second House Keywords SECOND HOUSE Response How You Respond How you Love How You Acquire Possessions Money Wealth Security

Houses Interpretations
In this course, we have provided different levels of interpretations for house interpretations. Here are interpretations for the twelve houses. These may prove useful to help you key in on what each house means.

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House Systems

First House: Interpretation The First House has to do with you, just who you are, and how you appear or come across to others - the impact you make on first meeting. It represents the sum total of what you have managed to get together in your life up to now and are able to put on the line for all to see - your complete package.

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House Systems

Second House: Interpretation The Second House has to do with money and possessions, but also with how you possess or "have" things - the way you acquire, measure, and love in life. It marks your ability (or lack thereof) to build on what you are given, and to embody your ideas and plans into something solid and real. It measures your receptivity and ability to listen, take things in, and use them.

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House Systems

Third House: Interpretation The Third House is all about communications and communicating, how you reach out, explore, and generally network with both people and things - your ability to make connections. All kinds of communication are indicated, whether written or spoken, by phone or by email, in private or in public - communicating.

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House Systems

Fourth House: Interpretation The Fourth House is about the total kind of life experience you will draw around you and how you feel about life, in particular when it comes to matters of home and Family, your particular security blanket.

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House Systems

Fifth House: Interpretation The Fifth House tells us about how we express ourselves, how we are creative. This includes our awareness of what we have done and perhaps are proud of, that is: all forms of creativity - whatever we have managed to express and get out. I can refer to anything we have created, and of course: children. Also: teaching and showing others what we have learned or are aware of.

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House Systems

Sixth House: Interpretation The Sixth House is said to be the house of health - how we take care of our self, but it is broader than that. This house refers to how we care, not only for our own person, but also how we care for others and also things - anything that needs our care and attention. Detailed care and attention is indicated.

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House Systems

Seventh House: Interpretation The Seventh House is the where we get beyond just our personal concerns and take an interest in others, whether that be the public in general, or a specific person that we bond with. This is why this house has to do with partnerships and responding to someone other than just ourselves - responsibility.

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House Systems

Eighth House: Interpretation The Eighth House has been said to refer mainly to sex, but this is too narrow a definition. This house has more to do with how we cut through the red tape and get right down to the nitty-gritty, to where things are really at. Here is where we strip away the veneer and reach the bare facts. It has more to do with business and essential exchange than with sexuality.

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House Systems

Ninth House: Interpretation The Ninth House refers to ideas and concepts in life that are of the deepest importance to us, and that will endure or last. And so, this house often tells us something about the kind of spirituality or religion that suits us. In any case, this is where only the most essential parts of our life, what means the most to us, can be found.

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House Systems

Tenth House: Interpretation The Tenth House has to do with our vocation or career, and marks the area in life where we may have a natural ability to see and manage. This is where we have the natural vision to take control and manage things, practically speaking, our ability to be successful.

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House Systems

Eleventh House: Interpretation The Eleventh House has been called the house of friends, and it is here that we find indications of our ability to work with others, and share in a larger vision, that of a community or nation - working for a cause greater than our own personal self interests.

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House Systems

Twelfth House: Interpretation The Twelfth House marks where we may be required to have patience and acceptance, perhaps sacrificing our own personal needs in order to move forward a cause greater than our self. This is where and how we find greater acceptance and the means to embrace fully what life presents to us.

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The Zodiac Signs

Signs Interpretations
We have a number of sections on the interpretation of twelve zodiac signs included in this course, so you can shop around for one that best suits you. Here is a straight-forward, but brief, description.

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The Zodiac Signs

Aries The sign Aries is the prime initiator in the zodiac, always jumping right in, starting things, daring to act and be making a positive statement or move. Quote: "I am"

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The Zodiac Signs

Taurus The sign Taurus receives or possesses, and thus is connected to "possessions," money, goods, property and what-have-you? Responds to any action or impulse, building it into something actual or solid, and thus: responsibility, the ability to respond. Quote: "I Have"

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Gemini The sign Gemini indicates communication and communicating, connections of all kinds and relationships of short duration, like conversations, emails, letters, etc. It rules short trips. Quote: "I Communicate"

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Cancer The sign Cancer rules home and family, and all matters of feeling secure. "Feeling" is the key here, since this sign experiences and feels life deeply. Quote: "I Feel"

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Leo The sign Leo is rules awareness or knowing, waking up to the experience of life and telling others about it proud of it. Leo is all about creativity and self-expression, getting things out. Rules children. Quote: "I Know"

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Virgo The sign Virgo is the caretaker of all people and things large and small, whatever needs looking after, in particularly when it comes to health and well being. Virgo always makes the best out of any situation, and insists on looking after the details. Quote: "I Care"

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Libra The sign Libra has to do with partnerships and the public, everything connected to leaving the single, personal, and the private, and assuming a role that is more social, as a public figure or by taking a partner. Objectivity. Quote: "I Do"

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Scorpio The sign Scorpio is associated with all things sexual and secretly private, but equally all matters of a business nature, cutting through the red-tape, getting rid of excess, and getting right down to the nitty-gritty. Quote: "I Cut Back"

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Sagittarius/ 0725 The sign Sagittarius has to do with truth and honesty, reducing everything to what is essential and most lasting, and thus spiritual matters and religion - the seed essence. Quote: "I Save"

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Capricorn The sign Capricorn indicates where we have a natural practical sense and can see to do, and thus its connection to vocation, that area of life that we can manage and make work. Quote: "I Manage"

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Aquarius The sign Aquarius has to do with community and altruistic efforts, putting our own personal concerns aside and pitching in on projects and plans of a more public or global nature - working with others on a common goal. Quote: "I Plan"

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Pisces The sign Pisces indicates those areas of life where we are most understanding, where we are most accepting, and willing to give of ourselves and sacrifice for the sake of making progress. Quote: "I Accept"

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Zodiac: Keywords
We have a number of sections on the interpretation of twelve zodiac signs included in this course, so you can shop around for one that best suits you. Here is a version with keywords and phrases, organized by various themes.

Cycles and Signs
The twelve signs of the Zodiac form a wheel, each sign being an equal 30 degrees, and one sign following another. These are the signs of the zodiac, upon which most of modern (and ancient) astrology is based. Most of us understand something when friends call out to us things like "No wonder, she's a Scorpio!," and "Watch our for him; he's go the Moon in Aries!" I am sure we all have a different take on these, but we get the drift. This much we all know, and we will get into what all of this zodiac talk means. But before that happens, it may help the process to understand something about where these twelve signs came from. What is the Zodiac?

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What Is the Zodiac?/ 0019 This is simple. The zodiac is nothing more than the path our Earth takes around the sun in the course of one year's orbit. This annual orbital path takes the earth through a sky filled with stars and constellations of stars. The particular set or band of constellations the earth passes through are the twelve familiar constellations and signs of the zodiac, thus the term: the band of the zodiac.

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What's Your Sun Sign? We all know that our Sun Sign is the zodiac sign for our birthday. I was born July 18th, so I am the zodiac sign Cancer. My sun sign is Cancer. And all that means is that on the day of my birth, if we walked out and looked at the Sun, it would be in the Tropical sign Cancer. Note, that I did not say it was in the constellation Cancer, but we will get to that down the road a piece. For now, it is important that we understand that whatever sign the Sun was in on our birthday is our Sun Sign, the blurb we read in the newspapers.

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Different Sun Signs So what we are saying here is that the Sun Sign astrology we all read in the newspapers and that folks talk about amounts to nothing more than a difference in birthdays, the earth was in a different part of its annual orbit. This is what separates you from me, and if these seem like a small difference, it just may be all the difference in the world. After all, human beings are mostly similar. If some alien race came from outer space and sorted us out, the fact that I am a Cancer sun sign and you are a Libra is probably not going to even register on their radar screen. But for us humans, these little differences can mean a lot. Again: this may be all the difference in the world.

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Learning the Signs Most of you reading this probably already know what most of the signs mean, just from exposure to sun sign astrology, and picking up on the way the zodiac signs are used in the day-to-day astrological jargon you hear about town. We all know that sun sign Cancers are homebodies, but I would be willing to bet that few of you know why the sun sign Cancer is a homebody or where in the world that notion came from. What I propose here is to, in addition to giving you all the traditional phrases and keywords (which is the way many people learn astrology), to also point out how all of these keywords and concepts fit together - where they came from. You can decide which is the most useful.

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Zodiac Cycles
Perhaps the best way to learn about the cycle of the twelve zodiac signs is in our own day-to-day life. The phases are all there and easy to spot. Why try to memorize hundreds of keywords, when a little observation will do the work for you, and be a lot more fun. This is how I learned. One thing we can't avoid are the ups and downs of daily life. Like the cycle of our breath, we take our internal cycles everywhere we go, so let's make use of them. In any given period of time, a few days or weeks, we have plenty of ups and downs. One day we are feeling up, all is going well, and a couple of days later we are down, and nothing seems to be going right. These are the cycles we live with, and they can be understood using the twelve phases of the zodiac signs.

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Capricorn The times when we are really up, and we are able to see our life in perspective have been called our out-ofthe-body experience or times of vision. This represents the Capricorn phase of our experience, the times when we can see what is going on and just how to handle what needs our attention. When we are up and seeing life clearly, it is easy to forget that we may not always feel like this. These out-of-the-body experiences are clairvoyant times, when we can just look around our life and make solid plans. We can see what to do and that is the experience of Capricorn.

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Aquarius The Aquarius phase represents our response to having had some really clear insight, and this happens to each of us. We are inspired and can see just what to do, and we want to get about doing it before we forget what we saw so clearly, before our inspiration fades. Aquarius wants to make broad plans and help to carry them out. And everyone is welcome to pitch in, because getting the job done is more important than trying to own it. Aquarians are community oriented, because they can use the help and see this as a group project. They are very future-oriented, because there is so much to do and they are always in the planning stage. Their devotion to the purity of the ideas they carry makes them very concentrated - independent - and not easily persuaded.

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Pisces The Pisces phase starts when our newly-inspired plans run into the inevitable series of obstacles that are in our path, usually the remains or our own old habits - the way we were before our inspiration. This is just the last thing we want to deal with, and these obstructions threaten to derail all our newly-made plans. We can be torn between just barging through all these hang-ups, or patiently taking care of these interruptions, one at a time. Of course, we should patiently work through our own messes, and then move on, accept what confronts us, if only for the sake of trying to move on with our own new plans. This is the experience in the Pisces phase, one of acceptance, forgiveness, and self-sacrifice, as a means to forward motion.

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Aries Phase The result of all the Pisces sacrifice and acceptance in dealing with whatever rises up to slow us down is what we manage to bring across through to this next phase, a new start. Aries represents the physical or practical result of our initial impulse or idea, what remains after we have paid whatever dues are required, Pisces). This is what we actually manage to get across. However small this step may be, it rises beyond the past (or on top of it) and marks an advance beyond the planning stage, and into the practical world - some kind of accomplishment, something that can be seen for our work. Aries always makes a statement, and is the turning point, moving from the idea or plan into the world of action. Something appears.

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Taurus Phase In the Aries phase, something new or fresh is brought through and into the world. Something appears that was not there before. The Taurus phase is always the practical (and exact) response to whatever it is that has just appeared. Taurus reacts, and draws around the Aries impulse a reaction or body. Every new impulse brings a response. Taurus embodies, has, and possesses. It is the field in which the impulse will grow, what will give it nourishment.

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Gemini When the reactive, bodybuilding forces of the Taurus phase have done their job, and we have reacted or responded to whatever Aries impulse made an impact, the Gemini phase has to do with completing the form that has emerged, getting into the fine points, and making all the final connections. We explore this new vehicle we are building, extending into the last detail. When all of our energy and effort is exhausted, we have reached the limit, and that is the sign Cancer.

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Cancer Here, whatever vehicle we have created from our original impulse (back in Capricorn) is complete. We have reached the limit or the living end of the experience. This is it. There is no more coming, and it is downhill from here. This is the finished experience or vehicle, and the tarot card for the sign Cancer is "The Chariot." Here you experience and feel (read: live) whatever you have created, good, bad, or in-between. You are in middle of the experience, inside looking out, your home for the moment.

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Leo Leo marks the first sign of the experience breaking up, and it brings the dawn of awareness as to what this particular experience in Cancer was all about. The thick of the experience is starting to pass and with that the energy bound up in it is releasing, and becoming free to become aware of itself. Leo marks the advent of the awareness that we have been through something, and just what it was that we went through. It is connected to a sense of ownership and pride, for we gradually realize what has happened, and who we are. This awareness is typically very energetic or enthusiastic - expressive and Leos love to tell and express to others (perhaps teach) what they have done.

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Virgo In Virgo, the first flush of self-awareness that we see in Leo has faded, and fallen back into more of a maintenance pattern, less enthusiasm, and more taking care of day-to-day tasks. The rush is over, and with the passing of that swell of energy it is clear that we won't have that level of oomph forever. The party is beginning to be over, and the mind turns more to conserving what we have, and splurging less. We try to save some of what is already fading. We salvage and conserve what we can. This is Virgo.

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Libra Libra marks the transition from a purely personal based point of view (my, mine) to something a little broader than our personal concerns, which as we saw in Virgo were kind of drying up in any case. The experience we had at Cancer, whatever it was, is now over, and whatever we got out of it (hopefully ourselves) has dwindled and died away during Virgo. It should be clear that it will not be getting any stronger. Libra marks a turning point, where we begin to respond to our precious experience and personal issues, much more impartially, since we cannot get back into the driver's seat where we once were. We are out. Libra marks our passing over into a more cooperative state of mind, sharing with others, partnering, and working in a more collective manner.

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Scorpio By the time the Scorpio phase of a cycle is reached, we are quite reflective, and personal ties and issues have pretty much dried up. They have reached the point of no return. In Scorpio, we can clearly see whatever remains of our past are worth hanging on to and what have little value and should be jettisoned. Traveling light is important here, and our analytical faculties are at their strongest. Scorpio is expert at making the tough calls, separating the wheat from the chaff, and more-or-less any business related matters. Scorpio strips the carcass of our past bare, cutting right to the chase, the nittygritty.

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Sagittarius Sagittarius marks the live-long end of the cycle, and a point where nothing remains of value from our past experience other than what we have learned from it, the seed essence. As the bard wrote "You must leave now, take what you need, you think will last." Here everything is reduced to the bare truth, what will serve to ignite or fuel the next round or cycle - the pith essence. Thus, Sagittarius has to do with what lasts or remains, and therefore matters of religion and core spirituality.

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The Familiar Sun Signs Sun sign astrology is what we read in the newspapers, on bubble-gum wrappers, and all kinds of other places. Is it legit? Who can say, these days? I am told that most of the newspaper astrology today is not written by astrologers, but is just hired out to free-lance writers. This was not always the case. The great 20th-century astrologer Charles A. Jayne, who was one of my best friends, wrote an astrology column for years in the New York Daily News, and you can be sure what he wrote made sense and was based on actual astrological work that he did. I know, because he told me so. He was proud to be able to bring solid astrology to so many people. What's your sign? We hear it all the time. Is this real astrology? The answer is: you bet it is, but there is also much more to astrology than just knowing your sun sign. Still, this is a good place to start, because we all know a From Michael Erlewine

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The Zodiac Signs little about our sign or we would not be looking at this course.

Sun Sign Dates When we say "sign," we mean of course, our sun sign, which amounts to announcing the time of the year you born. And a particular sun sign points to where the sun was in the zodiac on the day of your birth. Perhaps we should say the month of your birth, since each sun sign lasts about one month, although these months do not match up with our calendar months; they overlap. The list is above. You can use this list to see what sign you were born under. If you were born BETWEEN the dates listed above, then you can be certain that you were born in that sign. However, if your birthday is on one of the crossover dates (any date listed above), then you are said to be "on the cusp" or edge of one sign and another,

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The Zodiac Signs and may not know for sure which of the two signs you are UNTIL you have a chart calculated. I am sure that by now most of you know which of the twelve signs you were born under. If not, find the time of your birth and have an accurate chart (your horoscope) drawn up.

Visualizing Your Sun Sign Knowing your Sun Sign is pretty much knowing where the Sun was in the course of the earth's traveling around that body. Our Earth travels in its orbit around the sun at 67,000 miles an hour, so none of us is exactly standing still. Let's take an example: I was born in the middle of July, which makes me the sun sign "Cancer," the crab. As you can see in the diagram, we have the yearly circle (or cycle) of the zodiac, with all the twelve signs laid out in the seasons to which they belong. In the center of the diagram is the Sun, the symbol of a circle with a dot in the center.

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The Zodiac Signs Around that, and farther out, you can see a thin circle, which represents the orbit of the earth. On that orbit is the Earth, the symbol being a circle with a cross in it. The Earth is, as we can see, in the zodiac sign Capricorn, and moving in a counter-clockwise direction. From the earth, if we look at the sun, we can see that the sun is in the zodiac sign Cancer. In other words, from where we stand on Earth at any point during the year, the sun is always in the sign opposite. We see the sun in the opposite sign from where we stand. For example, if you are a sun-sign Virgo, then the earth was in the zodiac sign Pisces, and so on. You should be able to locate your sun sign on this chart, look across to the opposite sign, and imagine standing on the earth and looking at the sun in your birth sun sign. This is, as we all know, how sun-sign astrology works. But does it really work?

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The Zodiac Signs Sun Sign Astrology Works There is no question that sun-sign astrology, the most popular type of astrology used here in the West, is useful and does provide us with legitimate, but limited, astrological information. After all, the Sun and the Moon, called "The Lights" by astrologers for centuries, are the two most important bodies in astrology. In fact, one of the next questions often asked, once someone knows your sun sign is: What's your Moon sign? We will get to that later. So what can we do just knowing someone's Sun Sign? Before we can answer that, it might help to know what the Sun stands for astrologically. What is the meaning of the Sun in astrology?

The Sun/ 0055

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The Zodiac Signs The Sun is the single most important body for astrologers, at least in the West. It might interest you to know that in Asia and the East, the Moon is the most important body used by astrologers. In Asia, people don't celebrate your birthday (Sun), but they do want to know what lunar phase day you were born in? This difference tells a lot about the two types of societies, and we will study this in more detail later on. In astrology, both East and West, the Sun is a fiery body that can easily burn us, so it is always somewhat at a distance.

The Sun is the Self The Sun is said to represent "The Self," but a self usually seen (and better viewed), as we mentioned above, at some distance. It is the self we may want to be or can become in time, that idea of our self we look up to as youths, try to become as adults, and probably

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The Zodiac Signs will look back upon as we get older. It shines in the center of all our lives. By "center of our lives," I mean that we see the Sun shining bright as our future self when we are young; we look up to it in youth. We somehow seem to merge with it in our prime, and it is still the center of what we remember and know ourselves to be as we grow older. In other words, the Sun shines! And the Sun is shining, not just up in the sky out there, but astrologically, in here, within us. It is the Sun. Nothing compares to it. It represents what we want to become, what we will become, and all of the essence of what we have done and can ever hope to be. It should not be too hard to locate the Sun within our life, for it is shining right now, as it always has shone, and as it will continue to shine, virtually forever. It is what shines for each of us in our mind's consciousness. And we all share the same Sun, although each of us has our personal take on it. And that is what makes different sun signs "different." The Sun is the center of our solar system and thus our life. All warmth and life, as we know it, comes from the Sun. Earth endlessly circles this sun and each year marks a cycle or circle through all twelve zodiac signs, one after the other. And while the Sun is something we all share in common, the fact that it moves through the twelve signs, a month at a time, provides the difference between us. From the Sun's perspective, this is all the difference in the world, however small it may be. In other words, we have a lot in common with each other, but there are also precious differences. My being born in the zodiac sign Cancer and you being a Scorpio are just two different phases (call them zodiac signs) in the yearly cycle, and these differences are the differences between the different sun signs.

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Rote Memorization We all know that the zodiac sign Cancer is a home body, and that Gemini love to talk, but how did they get these attributes? Where did they come from? There are different levels of answers to that question. On the surface, and the popular way to learn about the different sun signs is good old-fashioned rote memory. You memorize or otherwise learn what each sign means. Some of you are probably already pretty much up to speed on this way of learning. Rote memorization is fine, but one of its disadvantages is that you are dependent on whatever source you used to learn about the signs, whether a book, a teacher, or just gradual familiarization. It works, but it is very difficult to generate new meanings on your own, and to figure out whether some idea or object belongs to this sign or that sign or to both.

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The Zodiac Signs The fact is that the attributes of each sign are not random, and they are not something you just have to memorize. The signs are linked one to another in meaning, just as they are linked one to another in the heavens. In other words, each sign leads to the next sign, and the following sign is the continuation of the previous sign - one continuous process. Over the years, I have found it much easier for students to take the time to understand how the signs came to be and work, than it is to try and memorize all the keywords and what-not. It also takes less time. But best of all, learning how to generate your own keywords means that, once you understand how the circle of the signs works, you can come up with your own keywords from then on, and not have to memorize anything. So I will give you the choice here of memorizing the keywords or learning how the cycle of the signs actually works. Those of you who would like to study lists of attributes for each sign can check that section out, while those who want to learn how these attributes are generated can do that. Probably looking at both won't hurt.

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The Point of No Return This is not an easy concept to grasp, but it is an essential one, and if you can get it, it will make your study of astrology much easier. Let me rephrase: Our consciousness, in other words that which we are now aware of, is made up of whatever lasts (hold together) long enough for us to see and experience it. It persists, and we perceive it. Every thing we can see lasts long enough to restate itself, and these endless restatements or returns make up our conscious life, and only that. When we reach the 'point of no return' in any project, we abandon that direction. When something ceases to restate itself, to return on itself, it drops from our awareness and is forgotten. Everything that is only is by having the strength to last and exist. If it loses that strength, it no longer persists.

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The Zodiac Signs Everything is only by returning. It is by the returns that we know anything. If we reach the point of no return on any subject, it is just that: the point where there is nothing coming back. It becomes like a straight line for us. This concept is difficult, so let's drop it for now and take another approach at the same material. Our entire life can be viewed as a process of investment and returns, giving and taking, and this process endlessly repeats itself and can be studied in the form of cycles.

Zodiac Correspondences
As we study astrology or any of the divinatory arts, we discover analogies here and there, sometimes whole sets of them. These have been termed "correspondences," and they go way back in time. And the signs of the zodiac have a great number of

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The Zodiac Signs correspondences. For example, the zodiac sign Cancer is said to correspond with the emerald, a precious gem, and also with amber. I doubt that anyone knows when or how this came to be, but it is part of the astrological lore and tradition. There are a great number of correspondences that go with the familiar twelve signs of the zodiac. Here we present one hundred of them, although there no doubt are many more. And correspondences have more than just a passing interest to most of us. As we put the pieces of astrology together, our mind will flash on various correspondences, and they will suddenly make perfect sense to us. These flashes can light up our mental sky and help to make the whole realm of astrology more visible. Everything is connected, and we each connect everything just a little differently, so one person's correspondences may mean nothing to someone else. Take a stroll through these sets of correspondences and see if any lights go on.

Correspondences Part 1
As we study astrology or any of the divinatory arts, we discover analogies here and there, sometimes whole sets of them. These have been termed "correspondences," and they go way back in time. And the signs of the zodiac have a great number of correspondences. For example, the zodiac sign Cancer: is said to correspond with the emerald, a precious gem, and also with amber. I doubt that anyone knows when or how this came to be, but it is part of the astrological lore and tradition. There are a great number of correspondences that go with the familiar twelve signs of the zodiac. Here we present one hundred of them, although there no doubt are many more. And correspondences have more than just a passing interest to most of us. As we put the pieces of astrology together, our mind will flash on various correspondences, and they will suddenly make

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The Zodiac Signs perfect sense to us. These flashes can light up our mental sky and help to make the whole realm of astrology more visible. Everything is connected, and we each connect everything just a little differently, so one person's correspondences may mean nothing to someone else. Take a stroll through these sets of correspondences and see if any lights go on.

Sagittarius: Common or Flexed Capricorn: Acute Aquarius: Pisces: Grave Common or Flexed

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Triplicities Aries: Taurus: Gemini: Cancer: Leo: Virgo: Libra: Scorpio: Fire: Fire of Fire Earth: Air of Earth Air: Water of Air Water: Fire of Water Fire: Air of Fire Earth: Water of Earth Air: Fire of Air Water: Air of Water

Sagittarius: Fire: Water of Fire Capricorn: Earth: Fire of Earth Aquarius: Pisces: Air: Air of Air Water: Water of Water

Correspondences Part 2
As we study astrology or any of the divinatory arts, we discover analogies here and there, sometimes whole sets of them. These have been termed "correspondences," and they go way back in time. And the signs of the zodiac have a great number of correspondences. For example, the zodiac sign Cancer: is said to correspond with the emerald, a precious gem, and also with amber. I doubt that anyone knows when or how this came to be, but it is part of the astrological lore and tradition. There are a great number of correspondences that go with the familiar twelve signs of the zodiac. Here we present one hundred of them, although there no doubt are many more. And correspondences have more than just a passing interest to most of us. As we put the pieces of astrology together, our mind will flash on various correspondences, and they will suddenly make

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The Zodiac Signs perfect sense to us. These flashes can light up our mental sky and help to make the whole realm of astrology more visible. Everything is connected, and we each connect everything just a little differently, so one person's correspondences may mean nothing to someone else. Take a stroll through these sets of correspondences and see if any lights go on.

Path Title Aries Taurus: Gemini: Cancer: Leo: Being Virgo: Libra: Scorpio: Constituting Intelligence Triumphal or Eternal One Disposing One Intelligence of the House of Influence Intelligence of All the Activities of the Spiritual Intelligence of the Will Faithful Intelligence Imaginative Intelligence

Alice Bailey Aries: Taurus: Gemini: Cancer: Leo: Virgo: Libra: Scorpio: Father of Spiritual Triad Power of Spiritual Triad Mind of Spiritual Triad Father of Spiritual Triad Power of Spiritual Triad Mind of Spiritual Triad Father of Spiritual Triad Power of Spiritual Triad

Sagittarius: Mind of Spiritual Triad Capricorn: Father of Spiritual Triad Aquarius: Pisces: Power of Spiritual Triad Mind of Spiritual Triad

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Realm Aries: Taurus: Gemini: Cancer: Leo: Virgo: Libra: Scorpio: The World Of God World Of Virgin Spirit World of Divine spirit World of the Lords of Spirit Region of Abstract Thought

Gemini: Power of being in tow or more places at once, Prophecy Cancer: Leo: Virgo: Libra: Scorpio: Casting Enchantments Power of training wild beasts Invisibility, Parthenogenesis Works of Justice, Equilibrium Necromancy

Tarot Design Aries: Taurus: Gemini: risen Cancer: canopy A flame-clad god, bearing equivalent symbols. Between the pillars sits an ancient A prophet young and in the sign of Osiris A young and holy king, under the starry

Leo: A smiling woman holds open the jaws of a fierce and powerful lion Virgo: Wrapped in a cloak and cowl, an ancient walketh bearing a lamp and staff Libra: A conventional figure of justice, with scales and balances Scorpio: A skeleton with a scythe mowing men, the scythe handle is a Tau

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The Zodiac Signs Sagittarius: Figure of Diana Huntress Capricorn: The figure of Pan or Priapus Aquarius: Pisces: Figure of a water nymph disporting herself. A Waning Moon

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Tarot Trump TItle Aries: Taurus: Sun of the Morning, Chief Among the Mighty Magus of the Eternal

Gemini: The Children of the Voice, Oracle of the Mighty Waters Cancer: Child of the Powers of the Waters, Lord of the Triumph of Light Leo: Virgo: Power Daughter of the Flaming Sword Prophet of the Eternal Magus of the Voice of

Libra: Daughter of the Lords of Truth, Ruler of the Balance Scorpio: Child of the Great Transformers, Lord of the Gates of Death

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The Zodiac Signs Sagittarius: Daughter of the Reconcilers, Bringer Forth of Life Capricorn: Lord of the Gates of Matter, Child of the Forces of Time Aquarius: Daughter of the Firmament, Dweller Between the Waters Pisces: Ruler of Flux and reflux, Child of the Sons of the Mighty

Planets Introduction
Astrology is all about the Sun, the Moon, and the nine planets. This is the very heart of astrology, both ancient and modern. We all know enough astronomy to have seen the Sun and Moon in the sky, and most of us have probably seen Venus and even Jupiter once or twice. But here we want to know more then just their astronomical value. We want to know what they are astrologically. What do these bodies mean in our natal charts? The modern astrologer knows that planets don't cause things to happen here on Earth. We watch the endless planetary patterns forming and dissolving in the heavens, much like we see airplanes writing smoke letters across the sky. We try to read what the writing says. What is happening out there in space and what is

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The Lights and Planets happening down here on earth are both happening in the same moment and the same general space. The same thing is happening everywhere, and there are just different ways of expressing it. Astrologers learn to read the language of the planets and the stars to better understand what is happening here on Earth. The key players in this are the Sun, Moon, and the planets.

A Working System Perhaps the most important first concept to note is that all of these bodies out there are not just isolated entities. They work and hang together as a system, the solar system. And they have all been doing this for a very long time, so they have found just the right distances to keep from one another, and they all orbit around the Sun. This integrated balanced system is older than any time we can measure and will probably last longer than any time we can imagine. By this time in history, this

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The Lights and Planets entire system has settled down and has its own unique rhythm and pace. Where we sit, on Earth, there are two planets inside Earth's orbit (Mercury and Venus) and a number of planets outside that orbit (Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, etc.). Gradually, over recorded time, each of these great heavenly bodies has drawn around it a vast amount of lore and meaning. These are not just a bunch of rocks circling the Sun. There is more and more evidence that not only our entire solar system, but our entire galaxy is a coherent system that somehow communicates within itself, at least enough information to continue to remain intact - coherent. Perhaps your introduction to this lore and tradition, so far, amounts to little more than what we have heard people say, things like "It's Mercury retrograde, so don't sign that contact," of "Have your party at the Full Moon; that is when the energy is high." What we want to do here is to take the time to really get to know the planets and what they have to say to us.

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The Planets One of the most helpful things to understand is that these planets out there point to something happening down here, and not just within our skin, although that too. The planets are vast areas of life, where we spend much of our time and most of our energy. Think of the planets not only as spheres of activity of one kind or another, but as actual stages in our life, where we may spend years or even decades. Elsewhere in this course is a module on esoteric astrology that covers the planets as chakras. Chakras are these vast areas or stages. In other words, each planet not only represents a certain kind of activity, but is also a location or place somewhere in our life space that we can visit, and in some cases, eventually master and find our way around in. We may go there to get a certain activity done, if we know how to use that space, but we also can, at times, get lost in a particular planet's energy, and have trouble From Michael Erlewine 296

The Lights and Planets moving beyond it. But we are drifting off topic, here, into the realm of esoteric astrology, so let's present the basic facts first.

The Lights The two most important bodies are the Sun and the Moon, and together this pair is called "The Lights" in the history of astrology. One shines and the other reflects. You can't look directly into the Sun, but you can more or less find your way around in the dark by the reflected light of the Sun on the moon - moonlight. And the Sun is not just another body in the solar system; it is THE body around which all the others revolve, the heart and center of the solar system. The Sun is, above all, the most important body in the system, not just astronomically, but also astrologically. There is no comparison.

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The Lights and Planets In a similar way, the Moon is the second most important heavenly body, not because it has any mass or importance outside of the earth's influence, but because it is about the only way we can receive light from the sun, other than from the sun itself. We all look at the Moon; we can't look into the Sun. Throughout the history of astrology, much has been made of the fact that the Moon shuttles back and forth between the space beyond the earth's orbit and the space inside of that orbit. It has been said to gradually feed us the light of the Sun, by degrees, so that we can assimilate it into our lives, like a great mother nurturing us. And the Moon is filled with mystery. The Mysteries of the Moon have been an integral part of occult lore for ages. We can get into some of that later, but for now let's go over some of the more common keywords and general descriptions of the Sun and the Moon.

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The Sun The Sun is not a planet, but one of The Lights, and is important to us beyond words. It is the source of all light, warmth, and life, and the very center around which the whole solar system of planets revolve. In astrology, the Sun has always stood for the Self, with a capital "S." It has everything to do with what we strive to discover, what we hope to become, and what we treasure in old age. It is the ultimate reference point. The Sun is the entire process of life, and perhaps all that can be said is: The Sun is Shining.

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The Moon The Moon, not even a planet, is the caretaker of Earth, and she spends her time shuttling from inside the earth's orbit to outside, and back. The Moon reflects the light of the Sun, like a great mirror, lighting up the night of our lives, endlessly redistributing the solar light through her phases. She is the great mother, the nurturer, and womb from which all life arises. The Moon holds many mysteries, some of which we will go into in another section. Next to the Sun, the Moon is the most important body in the heavens for us.

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The Major or External Planets The earth's orbit, third stone from the Sun (as they say), is far enough away from the Sun so that we are not burning and close enough to the Sun so that we don't freeze. At any rate, from where we sit on Earth, we have planets inside of the earth's orbit (Mercury and Venus), and we have planets beyond the earth's orbit, such as Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Beyond that, we have the socalled outer or transcendental planets, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, which we will get into later. Since we live here on Earth, we can look inward toward the Sun at the planets Mercury and Venus the inner planets. Esoterically, these planets are part of our inner life, as we have pointed out. We can also look outside ourselves, to the planets Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. These are external or outside our skin. Let's start with these three planets. The very order of the planets, as they exist outside the orbit of the earth (Mars, Jupiter, From Michael Erlewine 301

The Lights and Planets Saturn), is important and tells us something. Let's go over these planets, briefly, and get a feel for them.

Mars Mars, the next planet outside Earth, shows us just that, how we get outside our self, how we reach out and take action. Mars is the planet of our ambition and drive. Mars is what moves us. It is the energy that keeps us moving, that pushes us onward, but not in any particular direction. In fact, in traditional astrology, Mars is considered a malefic, because it can blindly move us to act without thought or direction, rashly, and we can get into real problems. We take action through our Mars. Mars is our endless drive to act and this planet is what moves us to find meaning in our lives. As mentioned, Mars propels us forward in life, but it is Jupiter that sets the course we will run.

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Jupiter Outside Mars is the planet Jupiter in the planetary order, as we move from Earth outward from the Sun, and if Mars is what keeps us moving, then Jupiter is the direction we are moved to go in - our particular life path. In this sense, Jupiter represents our vocation, how we make a living, and how we find our way through the obstacles and circumstances of our life. In a word, Jupiter is how we succeed or continue, our particular road or path through life. And while Jupiter shows us the best direction for us to take in life, our life path, the terrain we have to pass through is ruled by Saturn.

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Saturn In ancient astrology, Saturn was said to be the lord of form and the prince of the material world. Saturn is the physical set of natural laws, to which we all must conform. We don't break nature's laws; they break us, so we must obey these laws or pay the consequences. In this way, Saturn lays down the rules and sets boundaries in our lives. This planet represents the particular set of limitations and obstacles that each of us faces, and traditional astrology considers Saturn the major malefic, a planet to approach with great care. On a friendlier note, Saturn also provides all the structure we have, the walls that make homes possible.

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Putting It All Together At this point, we have gone over each of the first three outer planets briefly, presenting their general qualities, and pointing out how they in fact lead, one to the next, in the natural planetary order. The energy that drives us through Mars, is directed along a path by Jupiter, and Jupiter's path is shaped by the rules and laws of Saturn. This brings us to a very important astrological concept for chart interpretation, and that is:

The Inner is the Key to the Outer
When we interpret an astrological chart, and are considering a planet such as Saturn, trying to understand how to interpret it in the horoscope, we can remember this principle: The key to a planet will always be found in the next planet inside that planet's orbit. The inner is the key to

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The Lights and Planets the outer. This concept is useful, at least for the planets from Mercury out to Saturn, and vice

The Inner is the Key to the Outer Let's use Saturn, since it makes a good example, and because this planet represents, among other things, the obstacles each of us faces in life. If the inner is the key to the outer, then what is the planet next inside Saturn's orbit? That would be Jupiter, so Jupiter will be the key to interpreting Saturn in a natal chart. If we want to figure out how to deal with the problems and obstacles that Saturn represents in our chart, just look at the planet Jupiter for that chart, by sign, house position, aspects, or whatever other techniques you get results from. Saturn represents the obstacle course life offers, and Jupiter is the guide or path through that course. In India, the Sanskrit name for Jupiter is guru,

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The Lights and Planets and that points out to us the real nature of Jupiter: our guide through the limitations and corridors of life.

Jupiter is the Life Path We can apply the same principle to any other planet. Now let's take Jupiter, the guide or life path we spoke of earlier. Using the principle that the inner is the key to the out, the key to Jupiter in any chart will be Mars, which is the next planet inside Jupiter's orbit. Mars is the key to Jupiter. Let me make this clearer. As pointed out, Jupiter is the planet of vocation, the path each of us will take through life. If we are having vocational problems, getting a job, finding our way, then we look to the planet Mars in the chart, since that will show us what really drives or motivates us - what moves us. If the Jupiter path is not working out (can't make a living), examine what it is that moves the person, which is shown by the natal Mars.

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The Lights and Planets This simple concept can be very useful as you interpret the planets in a chart, especially if you are having problems or questions concerning a particular planet. In the module on esoteric astrology, this concept is gone into in much greater detail, as it relates to spiritual awakening, but here we have presented it more simply. To recap: the key to better understanding any planet, is the next innermost planet. The inner is the key to the outer. Now let's take a look at the inner planets.

Earth and the Inner Planets The inner planets are Mercury and Venus, and they are termed inner here because they exist inside the orbit of Earth. In an esoteric sense, they are part of our inner life, not so much having to do with our external or outer life. By saying that they represent our inner life, we mean just that: look to find the influence and nature of Mercury and Venus within yourself, and not somewhere outside

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The Lights and Planets in the world around you. But we have left out the planet Earth, arguably the most important one of all to us.

The Earth/Sun When we talk about Earth, what we are referring to is the Sun in the natal chart, since it is the Earth/Sun relationship that gives us the sun signs we use all the time. It is easy to forget, when looking at the natal chart, that it is Earth that is at the center of it all. It does not appear in the chart, because the natal chart is a diagram of the heavens around Earth. The symbol of the Sun is what is used in the astrological chart to represent this Earth/Sun relationship, because it is the Sun as seen from Earth that gives us our "sun sign." For example, having been born in the middle of July, my sign is the zodiac sign Cancer, which means that when I was born, the earth was orbiting the Sun, and from Earth at that time, the Sun appeared in the tropical zodiac sign Cancer. This means the earth was in the From Michael Erlewine

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The Lights and Planets tropical sun sign Capricorn at my birth. The point here is that the Sun in the natal chart ALWAYS stands for the earth. Here we consider the Sun and Earth as the same thing

The Key to Mars is Earth We left off with the planet Mars, what motivates or moves us to action, what really gets us going, and this is different for each of us. The key to Mars in a natal chart will be, of course, the earth, and so we would look to the Sun's position in the natal chart. The Sun/Earth always represents our self and what we will become or could become, when all is said and done - when we have realized our potential. The earth/sun always represents our Self, who we are at heart or in essence, and what we are striving to find or become. Mars is the striving, the drive to find, and the key to Mars will be to find that self or peace that each of us seeks, and that is always pointed out for us in the chart by symbol of the Sun. So From Michael Erlewine

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The Lights and Planets the key to Mars will be the Earth/Sun in any natal chart. That tells how each of us will find peace in our self, who we are.

The Key to Earth is Venus Now, let's get back to the looking at the earth, the third planet from the Sun, using the rule: the inner is the key to the outer. According to this rule, the key to life here on earth, and the Sun (Earth) in our natal chart, will be the next planet inside the earth's orbit, with is Venus. Venus (love) will be the key to life here on earth. And this should not surprise us, for the poets have been telling us for centuries in about every way possible that the key to life here is love. As the Beatles said: "Love is all you need." If we are looking at the Sun in the natal chart, and want to learn more about what that Sun is really about, what that person really cares about, all we need do is study

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The Lights and Planets the planet Venus in that chart, for that is our key. Venus has to do with love, and how we appreciate things anything. It also shows our sense of values, how we value, appraise, and measure whatever life offers. Venus has to do with possessions, because it is how we possess things, and points to what things we value how we value and care. And this care or love is not something out there, but rather something in here, within us. Venus is an inner planet. When we say someone is venal, we are talking about Venus.

The Key to Venus is Mercury The planet just inside the orbit of Venus is Mercury, and Mercury is thus the key to Venus in a chart. The planet Mercury has to do with the mind and awareness, in particular mental awareness, and thus ideas, thoughts, and how these ideas are communicated. The Sanskrit word for Mercury is Buddha, the concept of pure awareness. The key to how Venus values or loves in a From Michael Erlewine 312

The Lights and Planets chart is the idea behind those values, the kind of awareness one has. In the natal chart, Mercury represents our particular brand of awareness, and how we communicate with that awareness. Communication is central to understanding Mercury.

The Sun as Key The Sun is not a planet, but the center and source around which all the planets revolve. The Sun is the single most important astrological body, and that is why it, along with the Moon, are called "The Lights." They light up our life, in a literal way. The sun shining in the heavens is the single unalterable and seeming eternal fact in our existence. It shines day and night, and has done so before we can remember, and will continue to shine beyond the mind's grasp of future time. The Sun is the whole deal. Period.

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The Lights and Planets This is why looking at our inner or heliocentric natal chart is so important, because it is a chart of what actually was taking place in the solar system at the moment of our birth. The traditional geocentric natal chart, which we all use, is a snapshot of that system from the earth's view, but the inner or helio chart is a chart of the solar system itself, not just from the earth's view, but in itself. The helio is what the earth was viewing. We all need to learn what that is, because the helio chart is our inner or dharma chart - the life path.

Planet Interpretations
We have a number of sections on the interpretation of the planets included in this course, so you can shop around for one that best suits you. Here is a straightforward, but brief, description.

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The Sun The Sun signifies your identity and self, vital or heart essence. The father, husband, and men. Authorities, especially males, but also kings, presidents, heads of state, employers, and high religious figures.

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The Moon The Moon signifies the mother and wife, plus women, in general. Also, your environment, surroundings, background, and history. The womb, embryos, motherhood, fertility, and the tides. Also, the public, masses, crowd. The minds, subconscious, psyche.

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Mercury Mercury signifies communications of all forms, ideas, thoughts, words, both written and spoken, news, messages, gossip. This spins off to paperwork, deeds, letters, papers, and documents, in general. Also schooling, reason, logic, and all mental processes.

Jupiter Jupiter has to do with success, succession, and simple continuance - how we manage to continue and get through life. One of the Hindu words for Jupiter is "guru," and that tells us a lot. Jupiter is our guru and guide, showing us how we can get through life. Success or path = career, so Jupiter indicates our vocation or career, and how we solve the problems life throws at us.

Planets: Meaning
We have a number of sections on the interpretation of the planets included in this course, so you can shop around for one that best suits you. Here is a straightforward description, that goes over the basic qualities of each of the bodies.

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The Sun The Sun/Earth always represents the future, what you will be or become, in time, and thus your true identify or real self. This is what you look toward and also look up to, so the Sun stands for elders, authorities, teachers, gurus, and anyone more experienced. The Sun is your own future light shining like a beacon in time, and is that part of you that you have not experienced yet.

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The Moon The Moon represents all that is feminine, nourishing, and supportive in life, including the environment from which we came, like motherhood, home, family, childhood, surroundings, and the past. It also represents the world of feelings, emotions, and, the Mind - all meaning, memory, nostalgia, and history. The Moon is the passive force, in that the Moon helps things to pass and be forgotten.

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Mercury Mercury is pure awareness, the light shining in our eyes, and consciousness itself. It governs all things of the mind: thoughts, words, and ideas, plus all communications and connections - spoken and written, by phone, email, letter, and in-person.

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Venus Venus is all about how we appreciate or cherish life and the things and people in it. At the high end, this is compassion and universal love, but Venus also indicates just how we appraise, value, and enjoy life and the things in it. Venus is synonymous with money, acquisitions, and possessions.

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Mars Mars is the inner surge of ambition, motivation, and energy that drives or spurs us forward in our personal quest for the meaning of life. It is the energy within us that endlessly strives to find peace and unity, and thus it is connected to marriage, union, and yoga. When we speak of passion, it is Mars we are talking about.

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Jupiter Jupiter has to do with success, succession, and simple continuance - how we manage to continue and get through life. One of the Hindu words for Jupiter is "guru," and that tells us a lot. Jupiter is our guru and guide, showing us how we can get through life. Success or path = career, so Jupiter indicates our vocation or career, and how we solve the problems life throws at us.

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Saturn Saturn represents rules, laws, and the particular limits we face in life - our limitations. This planet shows us were we have no choice but to learn, the narrowness that makes our way through life felt - the walls that make our homes possible. Saturn holds us together as much as it separates us. Saturn represents discipline, organization, order, and always works to limit and determine our every though, word, and deed.

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Uranus Uranus represents our keyhole beyond day-to-day reality into the future, and has to do with discovery, invention, and insights. "To see eternity in a grain of sand," that is Uranus, finding new uses for everyday objects. It has come to stand for anything out of the ordinary: the unusual, eccentric, unconventional, novel, and innovative. It also brings independence, rebellion, and revolution. It is the opposite or undoing of Saturn.

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Neptune/ Neptune represents compassion, acceptance, unity, and universal love. "The dewdrop slips into the shining sea," is what this planet is about, anything to do with communion, and non-separateness. Neptune rules the imagination, dreams, mysticism and inspiration, including music, movies, film, and anything related to our ideas and images.

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Pluto/ Pluto points to deep inner change and transformation, always touching the raw nerve where we are the most sensitive and vulnerable. If we can't stand to look change in the eye, Pluto brings it about by force, if necessary. For many this has to do with our thoughts of death, dying, and what rebirth is all about. "Touch me if you dare!," is Pluto.

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Planet Interpretations
We have a number of sections on the interpretation of planets included in this course, so you can shop around for one that best suits you. Here is a straight-forward description of The Lights (Sun and Moon), the planets, the lunar node, and the main chart angles.

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The Sun The Earth/Sun represents your Self or identity, what you look forward to or hope to become in the future, and that which you respect or use as a reference point. In other words, the Sun represents all the changes that still are ahead for you, all of yourself that you have not yet experienced. The Sun, in one's life, is therefore at first usually someone you look up to and respect, often a mentor, teacher, older person - authorities or those more experienced in life - the essence of your future. The Sun burns brightly before us, showing us ourselves as we can or will be, but also too hot for us to endure just at the moment.

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The Moon Moon -- The Moon is whatever has nurtured us, our support system, and the entire environment out of which we came or were born, and thus it represents our mother, our personal past or history, our old habits, etc. The Moon is a mystery, and said to be both our mother and our child. The Moon is our parent, because it gave birth to us, and represents all the formative experiences out of which we have just emerged. It rules all memory of our experiences, it is said that we can see by the light of the Moon, and that it is our child because we can remember and easily see younger persons living now, in the past where we once lived. This is called "looking at the Moon," all those younger souls who are unconscious or 'sub' conscious to our own level.

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Mercury Mercury, called "Buddha" (Awareness) in Sanskrit, is the light in our eyes, the ever-changing consciousness within us that moves from idea to idea. Therefore Mercury represents the Mind and all ideas, the thoughts we have, and mental processes, in general. Mercury rules not only our thoughts, but also how they travel, meaning all manner of communications, whether by phone, letter, email, spoken conversations - what have you? And finally, Mercury rules the wires, waves, cables, and connections that communications travel through to reach us.

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Venus Venus rules how we love or appreciate, how we value things in our life, and therefore our values and sense of values. On the high end, Venus is compassion, the deepest form of appreciation, and on a more mundane level it rules how we appraise, access, and value things around us: a good dinner, a new car, and so on. And how we appreciate is also how we enjoy life, so Venus marks what we enjoy, and just how we like to have a good time. Venus rules our values and sense of appreciation.

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Mars Mars represents ambition, our inner motivation and drive, what urges us on, and keeps us moving forward. Mars is the all about meaning, what things mean, what moves us, and emotional energy and push, in general. Mars carries us beyond ourselves and out into the word, driving us up against things. Mars is also outward aggression and moves us into competition and combat. Ultimately, Mars energy is our search for meaning in our lives, and a deep urge for peace and unity. Mars is sexual energy that ends in marriage, union, and yoga.

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Jupiter Jupiter, named "Guru" in Sanskrit, is just that: our guru or guide through the thickets of life, our particular life path or vocation. Jupiter is how we succeed, the planet of success, and success here means simple succession or continuing, how we will be able to continue. Jupiter is said to be the key to Saturn, how each of us will find our way through the limitations and laws life lays on us. It is our personal dharma path, how we will solve the problems and obstacles that life brings. Jupiter is the way we go through life, our way to go.

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Saturn Saturn is about the laws and limitations of this material world we all live in. Saturn indicates where we are bound to learn, the narrowness that makes our way felt - the walls that make homes possible. Saturn, the great divider, holds us together as much as it keeps us apart. In many ways, Saturn is said to be the great teacher, the planet that keeps us from getting carried away too far in one direction or another. It will always seek to limit and determine any thought, word or action. Saturn or Satan has been called the prince of the material world.

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Uranus Uranus is how each of us gets some independence from the routine of our everyday existence, how we break out, and are able to see things differently. It rules all manner of discovery, invention, and insight, in particular: finding new uses for old things. Uranus marches to the beat of a different drummer, and therefore rules all that is unusual, eccentric, and off the beaten paths. It goes against convention and the status quo, and favors difference and variety, whatever is unconventional.

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Neptune Neptune is the planet of solution, endlessly solving all differences, and finding the unity in life, rather than what separates. It said to be the higher octave of Venus, and represents compassion and deep acceptance universal love and union. "The dewdrop slips into the shining sea." Neptune always sees the whole picture, the ideal as it should be and could be, rather than how it may be at the present. It is the planet of the imagination and inspiration, and thus relates to film, music, and the arts - wherever the mind can soar. It also rules all things spiritual, whether formal religion or personal dreams and beliefs - the mystic.

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Pluto Pluto somehow manages to skirt past our defenses and touch us deeply, to the very quick, and always wherever we are most sensitive. It can humble us in an instant, and bring on the hour's heartbreak, no matter how we may try to steel ourselves. For this reason, Pluto has been called the planet of transformation and real inner change, our inner alchemist. It is through Pluto moments that we identify with the greater life process itself, and in that experience, we cannot but change, and die to die whatever we have been thinking up to that moment, and be forced to take another look at things. Pluto can be harsh to the extreme, and is also associated with all kinds of force, and the more brutal kinds of truth.

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North Node The Northern Node of the Moon is one of the major indicators of the life or career path, that point in the chart where you can invoke or point toward with the confidence that it is what you should be doing and that any activity you make there will bring out and/or strengthen the overall life direction or path. The lunar nodes (north and south) mark where the plane of the orbit of the Earth/Sun intersects with the plane of the orbit of the Moon. In other words, here is the connection between the life-giving support of the Moon (for all growth) and the will or direction of your future, the Sun. Activating the North Node is said to strengthen the Sun/Moon relationship, bringing support (Moon) to realize the goal/future (Sun). This is why the North Lunar Node is sometimes called one of the "Life Path" indicators.

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Ascendant The ascendant or rising sign is how we appear or come across to others, not only how we appear physically, but HOW we appear, the way we make an entrance or take action. It has been called the most personal point in the natal chart, because it is the way we present (as in "to be present") or express ourselves, whatever is fresh flowing in us. It is what others see first when they meet us and how the remember and recognize us.

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Midheaven The Midheaven or MC indicates our overall practical view and take on things, how we see the world and are able to take advantage of it, thus our vocational inclinations and abilities. It is our vantage point. Because the MC represents just how we manage things, the type of management style each of us has, it tells us much about our fame, fortune, and general reputation.

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Vertex The Vertex is said to refer to our destiny or fate, that which is in store for us and cannot be altered. While this perhaps sounds a little rigid, it has the advantage of protecting us as well. It is true that we cannot alter it, but also no one else can get even close to challenging us in this area. "Touch me if you dare!" might be the motto for the Vertex. This is an area of the chart where you have real gifts, ones that cannot be ignored by yourself or by others. The Vertex is one of the main chart angles or sensitive points, the point where the Prime Vertical intercepts the zodiac, to the West or right-hand side of the chart, and is usually found in the 7th or 8th houses.

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Planet Keywords
We have a number of sections on the interpretation of planets included in this course, so you can shop around for one that best suits you. Here is a version with keywords and phrases for The Lights (Sun and Moon), the planets, the lunar node, and the main chart angles.

Ascendant Appearance How You Come Across Impression Point of Arising Atmosphere Attitude Personality Personal Style Character

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Midheaven Aptitude Career Credentials Clairvoyance Clear Seeing See To Do Direction of Life Aims Management Objectives Practical Vision Supervision Vision Methods Status Achieved through Career

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Vertex Destiny What Will Come Destined Future Next Step

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Transcendental Planets
We will now look briefly at the planets that exist beyond the realm of Saturn or time. Like the Sun on the inner side, these external planets are beyond the physical or material (Saturn), just as the inner planets are beyond the physical on the inside or within Saturn's orbit. These planets are Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, and the three together have been called the following: Out-of Body Planets, Transcendental Planets, Metaphysical planets, After-Death Planets, Planets of the Unconscious, Spiritual Planets, Impersonal Planets, Psychic Planets, and many other names. Since these planets are beyond Saturn, as mentioned above, they are transcendental, that is: beyond the physical experience, beyond the facts of life. What, then, are they?

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The Lights and Planets Saturn, as we have learned is the physical shell or body that encloses (and contains) life as we know it. We all live within the bounds or laws of Saturn, our physical body. Therefore, in approaching the outer planets, don't look for anything "more" out there. All the physical "more" that we know is held firmly (and safely) within the grip of Saturn. We could say the outer planets communicate just that fact: that there is no "more." You have not only gone as far as you can go, but you have gone too far. Let's me explain, slowly:

The Turning Point In our youth, as we grow up, we look forward to becoming older. When we are young, age is attractive and some kind of goal that we hope to reach. To come of age, to be an adult, and not a minor, is something we look ahead to. In fact, all through the 30-year cycle of Saturn, our physical body is forming. During this cycle of Saturn, age has incrementally been added on and each From Michael Erlewine 377

The Lights and Planets day and year gave us more, more maturity, more control, more respect, and so on. We became attached to the idea of always getting "more." So it is a deep (and for most very quiet) shock when Saturn completes its cycle at the age of 30 years and stops adding on. We may not know it for a while, but suddenly there is no "more" being added on. That kind of incremental growth just stops, but our expectations for more don't stop. Our forward momentum, built up through all the years of pushing to get to our maturity carries us onward, past the point of what we could agree is the prime of life, and past the point where we stop maturing in that absolute physical sense of reaching our prime. The physical process ceases, but our mental expectations do not. We are still pushing onward for more. More of what? More of whatever we have been pushing for all our lives thus far. And this is the root of a seldom-discussed problem that each faces. What do we do when there is no "more."

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Esoteric Astrology This is not an article on esoteric astrology, and that is what we are wandering into here. It would take a book to present the picture in full, but let's take a quick tour of this concept, since it is perhaps the best way to introduce the outer planets. The outer planets are just that, what is beyond Saturn, what is beyond the physical. When we go sailing past our Saturn return at around 30 years of age, we are heading for those planets outside of Saturn, the transcendental. My esoteric teacher used to say "Transcend-dental," literally beyond the teeth - beyond the physical. The next outer planet, Uranus, does not complete its orbit until around the 84th year, so there is a huge gap there, before we will be forced to get the message. In fact, we will have Saturn wrapping two times around before the experience of Uranus is completed once. From Michael Erlewine

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The Lights and Planets Another way to look at this is that each of us will spend most of our adult life wandering beyond the reach of Saturn (that is: beyond the physical) and we may not even realize it. At thirty years of are, we are launched beyond what we all recognize as the physical, but awareness of that fact is almost nil in modern society. Do you begin to see how obvious this concept is? The popular way of saying this is: we are past our prime.

Hide in Plain Sight It is an occult truth that the best place to hide something is in plain sight, and most of life's greatest secrets are hidden there - right before our eyes. They are so obvious that we can't see them, can't grasp their import. My way of putting this is: It goes without saying, or we can say it again. For most of us, these secrets of life are so obvious that they go without saying. Here, I am choosing to say them again.

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The Lights and Planets Well, Saturn marks what prime is, so if we are past our Saturn return at 30 years of age, we are already there past our prime and, physically speaking, it is a downhill slope we are on. Sure, the trajectory of our path will sustain us for some years. We still look good, and we continue to mature culturally, but there is no more growing to a perfect physical form, only this coasting for a while, and then the gradual decline. The point of all this discussion is not to be particularly morbid, but to set the ground very clearly for a discussion of the outer or transcendental planets. To do this, we have had to, as the Buddhist say, "turn the mind" toward the more serious side of things. I hope we have done that. If we understand that Saturn (and its cycle) represents the very limit of our physical life, then we can begin to wonder what comes after that, which has been called "the afterlife."

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The Afterlife It has always been a source of humor to me that the afterlife that all the books speculate on and discuss does not seem to start at the live-long end of life as we are told, but, rather, right smack in the middle of life, at the first Saturn return. Esoterically, we begin exploring the afterlife right here in the middle of this life. And it is ironic that what is right there in front of all of us is relegated to the realms of occult scholars and professors like me. This knowledge is all of our heritage, and it is obvious if we will just take a good look at it. Think about that, when you can. It would require a whole book to present it, but you get the idea. So, with that being said, let's turn our attention to these transcendental planets, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. We have established that they are outside Saturn. That is what "outer planets" means, i.e. beyond Saturn and the traditional planets. And we have made it clear that, From Michael Erlewine

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The Lights and Planets by definition, they cannot be about anything physical, because the physical ends at Saturn.

Metaphysical Therefore, these planets show us what is beyond the physical, what has been called the "metaphysical." The dictionary tells me that "metaphysical," among other things, means "without material form or substance." My point exactly, beyond Saturn. Metaphysics is not weirdly new-age or particularly hard to understand. We should all get it. So let me get right to the point, by giving you an analogy: What is the main thing we see when the space shuttle rockets outside of the earth's orbit? Deep dark space? Nope, the main thing to be seen from outer space, at least outside the earth's atmosphere is Earth. All the best photographs taken from the space shuttle are of the earth, are they not? Here you have the KEY to the

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The Lights and Planets experience of the transcendental planets, which are beyond Saturn. If we could send the space shuttle beyond the planet Saturn, we would see what? Mainly, the blazing Sun shining in the firmament, to use the traditional phraseology. The Sun Is Shining is what this is all about. Now let's talk about the outer planets in relation to what they can mean to us astrologically.

The Outer Planets We have made it clear that they are beyond Saturn, and therefore not physical in nature. We have pointed out, by analogy, that what we are going to see (and experience) when we get beyond Saturn, beyond our Saturn return, is not something subtle that is just somehow "out there waiting for us," but rather something quite striking, the Sun, Earth, and all the inner planets, and these represent to us (these inner

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The Lights and Planets planets), our inner life. When we complete our Saturn return at 30 years of age, we begin to discover our inner life, call it being re-born, born again, or what have you. When we stop looking out, and start looking in, we have discovered our inner or "spiritual" life. We did not see it before, because we were ourselves within it (within Saturn), but as we emerge from time's grip (Saturn), and start to float out beyond Saturn, we begin to see (and value) our inner life. In a very real spiritual sense, we are "born again," and our spiritual life has begun. This is, in fact, a major turning point in life. To recap: We get outside Saturn or the physical, we find Saturn and the physical, where? Within us, of course, and very much a part of our inner life. This concept is central to learning about esoteric astrology. Now for the outer planets. The outer or transcendental planets, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, are the story of the discovery of our inner or spiritual life. Please keep in mind that the inner or spiritual life I am talking about here is not "out there" somewhere, but "in here," the process of discovering the inner planets and all that we have had and known all along. How could it be anything else? Each of the outer planets progressively discloses to us more and more of our inner life, makes it ever more clear that there is no "out there" to be added on to life, but that what we already (and always) had, in here, as part of our life is what is to be valued and shared. One traditional way to say this is that "we discover our self," and that self, astrologically speaking, is the Sun and all the planets and the processes that bind together. Let's take these three outer planets, one by one, and using the traditional keywords for them, show how all of this works.

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Uranus Uranus is the first planet beyond the Saturn cycle and it brings the first breaking up of the saturnine grip on us, with flashes of insight and recognition... brief glimpses of the awareness that is to come. Each bit and part of Saturn, becomes a lens through which we can peek and see a glimpse of eternity, the eternal process of awakening that awaits each of us. Uranus, is ever the planet of inventors and inventions, of lighting-fast insights, of discovery, and new ways of seeing things. Makes sense, does it not? When Saturn releases its hold on us, and starts to break up... when we begin to glimpse or see through the chinks in time's armor to what is beyond time, that is the function and sign of the planet Uranus. "To See Eternity in a Grain of Sand" as the poet William Blake put it, that is the work of the planet Uranus. Every grain of Saturn,

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The Lights and Planets every physical part and form, in time, becomes a window for us into eternity. At first, there are just lightning flashes that light up our awareness for brief moments, glimpses into another world. But these flashes, as time progresses and we work with them, become longer and light up more and more of our inner sky, until at long last the great Sun dawns and have constant light. We get the idea. Our spiritual life begins. This constant light is the province of Neptune, which we will get to next.

Neptune The experience of Neptune dawns as Uranus, like the finale at a fireworks, lights up our inner sky. Through Uranus, we break through Saturn and began to discover our inner life. With Neptune comes the dawn, and it is like the Sun coming up. With Neptune we can at last get our arms around the whole idea. Our process of discovery has gone beyond counting mere glimpses From Michael Erlewine 387

The Lights and Planets and insights, into a cacophony of light, and we finally get the whole idea, that beyond life as we knew it, we find that same life, alive and well, but within us. As Sir Edwin Arnold so aptly put it, "The Dewdrop Slips into the Shining Sea." Neptune is the archetype of the "big picture," the Grand Trine of the planets. With Neptune, we reach the point where we not only realize that we are now outside time or Saturn, that we have (and have always have had) an inner life, and that the same hard-edged life we grew up through is now something to be cherished and cared for. Neptune embraces life, with no exceptions. It is pure compassion, and everything is valued equally. In the Buddhist hierarchy, Neptune represents the Bodhisattva, the one who vows to care for all sentient beings until every last one reaches enlightenment. The idea here is that what we discover in the planets beyond Saturn is not something out there beyond Saturn to "get," but the bare fact that there IS nothing else out there. This is what we can call the turning point, and as we turn we discover the life we left and grew up in and through to be the only game in town. As the philosopher Parmenides so eloquently put it: "Being alone is." In other words, there are not two, but only one. Uranus provides insights and flashes into this fact, and Neptune illuminates our inner sky with full daylight as to this truth. Which leaves Pluto.

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Pluto Thus far, each planet beyond Saturn brings home the point to us that looking outside for things will never work. We must look within to find what we are looking for. Therefore, speculation about finding more and more planets beyond Pluto, whether they be large or small should be tempered with the fact that we cannot hope to get any different message from them. They will all tell the same story to us, and that is: Look no farther out there. Turn around and begin to look within. That is the key. Of course philosophers and poets have been telling us this for centuries. Regardless of how many more bodies will be found out there at the edge of the solar system, their meaning will all be the same: look within. Pluto represents that message more clearly than the insights of Uranus and the embracement of Neptune. If Uranus is breaking out, and Neptune is turning back and embracing all that is, then Pluto is the knowledge From Michael Erlewine 389

The Lights and Planets that this whole process will repeat itself, endlessly. It is one thing to discover our inner or spiritual life (Uranus), another to embrace it fully (Neptune), but yet a very different thing again to grasp that we will do all this again, and that we don't only go around once, as the beer commercial would have it, but we go around again and again. Pluto is the planet of reincarnation and that experience, not as an abstract idea on the pages of a book, but as a vital realization of the nature of life. Pluto is the experience that all life, all people, and all sentient beings, are us, and that when we look into a young person's eyes, we are seeing ourselves.

The Planets as Chakras
There are dozens of books written about chakras, the invisible force centers within the body, and their relation to the various planets used in astrology. You have all

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The Lights and Planets seen drawings of someone seated in meditation posture, showing various glowing centers along a line running up and down the spine, from the top of the head to the ground. Each of these spiritual centers represents a certain kind of energy and, for astrologers, each chakra has a planet that we can key into. Most of this material finds its roots in the various kinds of yoga practice found in ancient India and still in use today. Chakras' and their study have to do with spiritual awakening. Each chakra or center refers to a certain type of energy that we can become aware of and tap into. In fact, as we shall see, the chakras are not just small centers along our spinal cord, but vast areas of life. We spend most of our lives wandering in one chakra or another. What is important for astrologers is to discover which chakra they (or a client) are in right now. Where are we? Once that is known, a great deal of very useful knowledge is forthcoming, as we shall see below. Another important point in chakra study is to learn how we become aware of the chakras in our lives, and the order in which each chakra is opened or comes to our attention and realization. What we want to cover here is just what are the chakras, and how can astrology make use of them?

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Vast Areas of Life First, it is said that these subtle centers or chakras are the stuff that very high yogis and meditators experience, not something you and I are likely to be very sensitive to. I have not found this statement to be true. And second, and this is now getting into esoteric astrology, the chakras are not so much something to look for inside your personal body, as they are to find in the world you live in - all around you. Again: chakras are vast areas of life. They are not that subtle and can be experienced by any of us willing to look. This entire world we live in is one great life and body, and the various chakras are external places out there in our world, rather than just points located along our personal spinal cord. In fact, if you want to study the chakras, it is far easier to do this by learning to see these vast centers as they exist in the everyday world we live in. That will be our approach here. From Michael Erlewine 392

The Lights and Planets The first step is to stop looking for the chakras inside your body and, instead, learn to recognize them all around you, where in fact they exist. This will not be very difficult, because in the external world, chakras are easy to see, and not particularly subtle. However, they are not places you can travel to, like Chicago or L.A., but more like stages we all go through, phases where each of us tend to spend more or less time in during our lives. In fact, everything you can read about chakras in the many books, you can see and experience for yourself, if y

Opening the Chakras In the books and literature on the chakras, each chakra is often matched to a planet, and that planet is the astrological key to the particular chakra. There has been much discussion on how the various planets fit (or do not fit) a particular chakra, and as well as particular the order in which they are opened/recognized - how we

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The Lights and Planets become aware of them. You can Google this on the web, and find dozens of maps and descriptions, seldom finding two that agree on all the factors. Aside from pairing up the planets and chakras, the main point of working with the chakras is the order in which they are opened, that is: the order in which we become aware of them in our lives - how they unfold for us. Again, there is much disagreement on this topic, as well, and different people may become aware (open) chakras in a different order.

Summing Up Chakras are vast centers of life energy located not just along the line of the body's spine, but out there in the world we live in, for all to see and experience. They are not all that subtle, and are the rule, rather then the exception. We all experience them all the time. It is hoped that after we point out what they are, you will

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The Lights and Planets immediately be able to see and experience at least some of them right away. You are in them now, and always have been, so don't look for something new. Look to see what you already have from a new perspective. That's it. One of the most useful things about studying chakras at all is to better understand how they relate to one another and how we move our consciousness from one chakra to another, as we learn and change. How we open the chakras (the order of that opening) is the main reason we study this subject at all, and well worth learning something about. In fact, understanding how most people become aware of chakras (the order of opening) is essential for becoming a skilled astrological reader of charts. Those of you who are already experienced astrological readers will soon recognize what is being described here. In other words, the order of opening or experiencing the various chakras or planetary force centers will tell you where someone is at in their life and, therefore, where they are headed next. This is essential information to have. The vast majority of people (that is: most of us) experience the chakras or planetary centers in the same way. We find and open them in the same order, encountering one, then another, and so on. Sure, there are alternate ways to experience them, but my goal here is to point out one way, the most usual way, and let you take it from there.

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Esoteric Keys Now, let's look at the planets. The planets partake of cycles, but are not cycles themselves, so what we have learned about the cycle phases of the signs, houses, and aspect cycles won't help us too much here. So how do we avoid simple rote memorization of the planet attributes? Luckily, there is an approach to these bodies that makes it easy to understand how the planets relate to one another, one that will make it easier to generate keywords. First, let's group the heavenly bodies as astrologers and astronomers have grouped them for centuries. The Sun and the Moon, technically called "The Lights," are not planets and are usually treated separately. Also, the outer or Transcendental Planets (Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto) are most often also treated as a unit, so we will

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The Lights and Planets save them until later, as well. In traditional chakra study, the outer planets are not considered. We will concentrate on the traditional set of planets used by astrologers around the world for centuries and centuries: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. These six bodies, plus the Sun, are the main bodies we will consider at this point. And we will study them in their natural order out from the Sun: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The secret to understanding these planets is simple:

The Key To The Outer Is Always The Inner In other words, the key to the nature of any of these planets will be to look at the planet just inside their orbit, the next planet closest to the sun. To make this very clear, let's take an example that should be obvious to all of us, the planet we live on, Earth. The planet that is just

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The Lights and Planets inside Earth's orbit (closer to the Sun) is Venus, the planet of love and appreciation. So, the KEY to our Earth/Sun in our charts will always be our Venus. Does this ring a bell? It should, for the poets and philosophers have, for centuries, told us that the key to our life (Earth) is love. Love is the key. Love is all you need. Well, Venus stands for love and Earth/Sun stands for "us," since that is where we live. If we want to better understand the Earth/Sun in our chart, we should examine the position (and aspects) that Venus makes. The same is true for the other planets. Here is the list. The key to Saturn is Jupiter. The key to Jupiter is Mars. The key to Mars is Earth/Sun. The key to Earth/Sun is Venus. The key to Venus is Mercury. The key to Mercury is the Center of the Sun.

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Planets as Chakras
We can read these bodies from the outside in, as above: Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Earth, Venus, Mercury, and Sun. Or, we can read them from the inside out: Sun, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. If we read them from the inside out, from the Sun out to Saturn, they describe the order in which we form and grow. However, if we read them from the outside in, they show very clearly the path or road most of us take to spiritual discovery or awakening. This second ordering is why chakras are so important to understand, because they point to how we will spiritually awaken. In every case, in order to reveal, open, and use the outer we take from within. We literally go within. Each inner planet is the entire essence and key to every planet outside its orbit. But let's start with the first ordering, from the inside out, from the Sun out to Saturn. The natural ordering of the planets outward from the Sun to Saturn is literally a description of their function and use. In what follows, there is only one key thought necessary in order to use the planets in your own natal horoscope and that is:

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The Inner is the Key to the Outer 0 Examine the following list very carefully. It is the measure in time of exactly when in growth (during each child's personal existence) the various planets complete one whole revolution of the Sun in their orbit and pass on to repeating themselves - a second round. A complete revolution of a planet seals or separates the infant from the one non-manifested state out of which he or she is born into this world of time. There are said to be seven seals including the Sun (which is timeless) out to Saturn, and with each seal, the rule of Saturn or time takes a greater hold on the lifetime. It has been pointed out by great astrologers, like Grant Lewi, that after birth, each planet moves to complete its first round of orbit. When that happens, that particular planet becomes part of our history or experience and falls into endless repetition of itself, going over and over the same ground - the zodiac. Each planet becomes From Michael Erlewine 400

The Lights and Planets part of us, who we are, once it has made one complete circle or cycle. More important, as Grant Lewi points out, as each planet completes its first round, we are freed somehow of that planet to begin picking up on the rhythm and nature of the next longer planet cycle. In other words, when Mars completes its first orbit around two years of age, we are free to start sensing or monitoring the next more outward planet, Jupiter, as so on. Mars has become part of our experience, but at this point we have no idea of the whole concept of Jupiter, because it has no revealed itself to us yet in its entirety. It is still completing that first round. You get the idea.

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Mercury Through Mars Let's go through the orbital periods of the planets outward from the Sun, and begin to get an idea as to how this works. Here is the list: MERCURY: Mercury returns in its orbit at about three months of age. In studies of child behavior we find that, after the third month, the child's basic awareness and vision approximates that of an adult and he/she begins to see in color. The child's motor responses switch around this time from reflex to voluntary. VENUS: Venus completes an orbit of the Sun at about seven and one half months. Studies show that around this point the child perceives the mother as separate from it and begins to become strongly attached to the mother. The child can now distinguish and vocalize both pleasure and displeasure. In other words: a separation or duality occurs that allows appreciation or reunion.

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The Lights and Planets EARTH: The Earth completes its orbit of the Sun in one year, and we all know that this is usually when baby steps out into the world on their own two feet. MARS: Mars completes its orbit of the Sun in a little less than two years and any parent reading this is quite familiar with what has been nicknamed the "Terrible Twos" - when baby discovers emotions and struggles for independence. JUPITER: Between Mars and the next planetary orbit is relatively the most vast change as measured by space between any two planets. Mars makes six revolutions before Jupiter completes one at around twelve years. In between these two planets is the great asteroid belt filled with countless particles. The six year molar occurs as Jupiter reaches his half way mark and opposes himself, but more important, around 8-9 years the child passes from the more eternal or expanded time concept quite rapidly to the adult perception of time's passage. After the twelve year molar and Jupiter's return, the child expands into adolescence and begins to pick up on and to monitor the next and most definite cycle: that of Saturn. At Saturn's opposition (14-15 years) puberty has set in and time or Saturn moves to complete its cycle at around thirty years, after which point spiritual awakening or unsealing of the seals or chakras proceeds at an accelerated rate.

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Climateric Years The accompanying graphics include charts of all the major planets' aspects to their own natal horoscope positions as they transit to complete their various cycles for a period of 99 Years. What should be clear in a careful study is the bunching of important aspects at certain points and years in any lifetime. Space prevents elaboration here, but examination on your part will show you how and when the various chakras are formed, as well as how they open or come apart. Any good dictionary will list certain crucial years under the term "Climacteric," but not as linked to the cycles of the planets. The most well known are the years: 21, 49, and 63, but you will as an astrologer recognize these years as well as important: 7, 9-10, 14, 25, 29, 41, 51, 54-55, 66, 69, and so on.

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The Point The point here is to introduce you to the planetary chakras as major life-stage centers, great areas in our life that most of us visit or discover, whether we are aware of them or not. Although pundits argue and discuss in what order the chakras are opened or found, almost everyone follows the same order, and again these follow the simple order of the planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, but now, in the reverse order. Some paragraphs above, you were introduced to the orbital lengths of the major planets, that is: how long in time it takes each planet to go the full 360-degrees of their orbit and to start repeating themselves - going over the same ground again. Completing a planetary circle or cycle in turn is an important event. The idea is a simple one: while we experience our first round of any planet, there is something very fresh and new about that From Michael Erlewine 405

The Lights and Planets experience for us. It is almost as if what that planet represents knows no end or boundaries. We are experiencing it for the first time. However, once it complete that circle/cycle and begins to go over the same area, our natal place, for the second and subsequent times, we sense this. Something within us recognizes that we have been here before, and that particular planetary cycle falls to an endless repetition within us, like marking a groove that we go round and round on, thereafter.

Mercury and Earth The planet Mercury takes only about three months to complete its cycle, and after even a few years, that planet's track through the zodiac is like a constant groove or hum for us. Mercury represents the mind, and all mental work, and that quickly becomes a natural part of our inner life. Remember, the Mercury is an inner

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The Lights and Planets planet to earth, so is sensed within or inside us, rather the in the external world, outside us. It is similar with Venus, another inner planet that establishes its rhythm in us at an early age - less than one year. Venus has to do with our likes and dislikes, how we care for and cherish things - love, if you will. Earth is where we live, so we are that. We start walking around at about one year. It is with the planets outside the orbit of the earth, like Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, that we look to find their effect outside our skins, so to speak, somewhere out there in the external world around us. As we get to the planets beyond earth's orbit, it takes longer and longer to make a cycle and we are caught up with the freshness of each of these cycles for many years. We will have more to say on this later on. We are measuring these cycles heliocentrically, since that is the actual orbit of the planet around the Sun. No body, other than the Moon, orbits the earth.

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The Ultimate Talisman Let's get back to the concept of the planets as chakras. The life process we each live, as measured by time, follows a very regular pattern of growth, sustaining, and aging. The physical is not independent from the spiritual, but quite reflects the spirit. The physical body is our ultimate charm or talisman. It is our sign or signature of spirit, however much it may fail at this point in time to reflect our intentions. As the adage says, "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." The KEY idea presented in these pages is that THE INNER IS KEY TO THE OUTER. We must take from within ourselves and bring out and manifest our good intentions in this world. The physical body, which is ruled by Saturn (the master of form) takes some 30 years (29.4 years) to reach maturity and fullness - the cycle of Saturn. By that time,

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The Lights and Planets our physical body has matured as much as it is going to. If we have lived well, our body will sustain itself for some period of years, and then gradually go into a slow decline into old age. We all know this. All of the planetary cycles, from Mercury through Jupiter, are contained within one cycle of the planet Saturn. In fact, all have gone round more than one time by the time Saturn makes its first round, so we are familiar with these planets to some degree. We have seen how the planets measure our life and growth after birth, from Mercury out to Saturn. That is our physical growth and maturation. What we now want to study, and we are getting to the meat of this section, is how does our spiritual enfoldment take place? We have seen how the body forms around the young child, now we want to understand how we leave the body, how we awaken spiritually. It should not be surprising that it is the planet Saturn and the Saturn chakra that is the first one we face when we begin to have some kind of spiritual awakening or self discovery. In the sections that follow, we will present this process of spiritual awakening, planet by planet, in the most usual order that most experience them, from Saturn toward the Sun.

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Saturn In our personal horoscope many astrologers begin within the natal Saturn, in order to see how we will be tried and tested. The key to overcoming Saturn will always be our natal Jupiter and meditation on this part of our chart will gradually help us to succeed in rising above Saturn. Remember: the inner planet is the KEY to the planet outside its orbit, from Saturn into the Sun. I am reminded of the old saying: "God helps those who help themselves," but we might add "from within." The inner is the key to the outer.

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Saturn: A Formal Definition
Let's be a little poetical here and describe this very powerful planet. Saturn or 'Satan' has always been said to be the prince of the material world. Saturn is the narrowness that makes the way felt. Saturn is the raceway or spillway through which course (Jupiter) the waters of life (Mars). Jupiter is the blood coursing, the course. Saturn is the course structure, the walls of the arteries, the resistance that allows pressure to build to something definite, to real "feeling." Saturn is like a wood shaper that is adjusted to produce a certain piece of molding. Any wood presented to this shaper has no alternative but to pass through only where it conforms to the desired or possible shape as set by the limits. Saturn is the limiter. All other wood is shaved away. Eternity or truth dictates the limits, and Saturn is the shaper or test of form. When we talk about "getting straight" or "getting in line" or "in tune," we are

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The Lights and Planets talking about getting within the control that is. In this sense, Saturn helps to determine the shape of things to come. All laws working together: form.

Saturn: Natural Law Saturn is most simply the system of natural laws, the functioning of which determine what is possible in this material world (such as the law of gravity) - the laws that hold things in place, the walls that make homes possible. Saturn is the laws that govern the forms things take, AS WELL AS the form things take. The forms things take is only the form things are taking (the process). Saturn represents those laws to which we will be physically determined. Saturn is the form to which we must submit, before our evolution or unfoldment may take place. Saturn is the laws against which we may ram our head until such time as we learn, by feeling our way, to walk around or even to build upon them - to COUNT on them. Saturn is literally where we are BOUND to learn. From Michael Erlewine

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The Lights and Planets Saturn is the test of a lifetime and equally a lifetime of test. We are subject and tested by these laws, until such time as we learn to use these laws in our own behalf and put them to use working for us. We rise above Satan or Saturn in proper use and obedience to the physical laws. "Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's." Saturn is where you come to grip with yourself and learn of your more spiritual side. Saturn is the end to which we are tending, but also how we tend to get there. "Call what carriage as you may your hearse," for Saturn holds you together as much as it may appear to hold you back.

The Guardian at the Threshold Well, that was a more formal definition of Saturn. What of the experience of Saturn as a chakra? Saturn is usually the first of the chakras to be opened, not because we would choose it, but rather because it

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The Lights and Planets stands between us and knowing ourselves - any kind of spiritual awakening. This planet is the ring-pass-not, the guardian on the threshold of awareness. Until we have come to grips with our personal Saturn, we cannot really make any kind of personal progress. How Saturn manifests in each of our lives varies and we can look to the placement of that planet in our charts for more information on that. However, what we are describing here is much more than looking up a planetary symbol on an astrological chart form. It is the other way round: the astrological chart form is a diagram of these planetary life energies. What is important here to grasp is that Saturn is a vast area of life, at the very least a phase each one of us encounters and must confront as we grow from being a young person to an adult. As a way of showing you this, let's talk for a moment about the key to Saturn, which would be Jupiter, the next planet in from Saturn. Jupiter, as we shall see, is the vocational planet, the planet that shows us our life path, our way through Saturn.

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The Saturn Chakra So if you have a young person (or an older one), who has not come to grips with their own talents and cannot seem to find a good vocation, a way to get through this world we all live in, then you have a person who is living in (at least most of the time) in the Saturn chakra. They have yet to find the key to Saturn, a way to make a living, a path through the Saturnine world they are mired in. And being stuck in the Saturn chakra, which a great many people are, is not fun. It is a tough go. So perhaps you can see why the Saturn chakra is the first one to be encountered when we reach maturity. We can sum it up as being all the problems we come up against in life as well as the way we come up against them. Each of us must learn to come to grips with our own problems and to deal with them. We each must find the key to our Saturn chakra, which will be the way to get through Saturn - to handle it. Saturn never goes From Michael Erlewine

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The Lights and Planets away. It is always right where it is, but we learn to work with it, to manage it. How we manage it depends on the planet Jupiter, and we will get to that. But before we go there, let's spend just a little more time making sure you recognize life in the Saturn chakra. Keep in mind that, as we grow up, we have become habituated to the endless round of the smaller planetary cycles in our life. Meanwhile, all this time, Saturn has been laying down its tone or experience. Let's say something about how the Saturn chakra may manifest for us. First there can be the obvious physical hardships that come from being unable to find a right livelihood, to make a decent living, and to have to go without. Physical struggle is tough, but there are psychological effects as well.

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Experience under Saturn The psychological experience under Saturn or time is to know only total fear for our life, in particular what we hope to become. The external world sulks, looms ominous, and threatens disaster and accident at every street's crossing. We are wrapped in the rush of time tearing at hour's hearts. Every single thing, every outer edge and hard person, only serves to cause us to put off our life, to postpone, and sends us scurrying fast into the future, hoping, hoping, hoping someday, somewhere, to find the chance to be ourselves. Living in this fear, we put off endlessly until tomorrow what we find just too hard to do today. We are the "Beautiful Soul" that Hegel describes so exactly in his "Phenomenology of the Mind :" "This soul lacks force to externalize itself ... the power to make itself a thing and to endure existence. And, to

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The Lights and Planets preserve the purity of its heart, it flees from actuality and steadfastly perseveres in a state of self-willed impotence to renounce a self which is pared away to the last point of abstraction... and to give itself substantial existence or in other words: to transform its thought into being and commit itself to absolute distinction, that between thought and being." Life under Saturn is an endless imitation and a rehearsal, a boredom, and a long, long wait. The way we tell it asks a lot, and, in all our talk, we hear our own hollowness echoing back upon ourselves to inform us that we still have not begun. We have not solved the problems. We are the prey of time and Satan/Saturn.

Jupiter is the KEY to Your Natal Saturn
Jupiter is the key, which unseals and overcomes our Saturn. Jupiter is the heart of Saturn, grasped, and turned inside out. It is the guide and light that sees us

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The Lights and Planets through the darkness of time or Saturn - the straight and narrow path by which we pass through Saturn's test. For each of us, Jupiter is our particular way of going or our religion - the truth for us. It is the way we go or continue, our luck or solution to time's test. Jupiter is the only way or doorway open to us and through which we may pass through realm of Saturn. Jupiter is said to be expansion, because life unfolds or continues at this point. It is here that we find the extension of the present situation: the way through or on. Jupiter is simple continuity - how we can continue or get through. Jupiter is the endlessness of going through life, regardless of the particular form. Jupiter is how and where things continue or happen - The Path. Jupiter is an endless round of passage, the lamp or light that will see shadows fail. Jupiter is above all the KEY or reverse of Saturn. It is the recognition or realization of Saturn for: Jupiter is the way each of us must go through Life. It is the recognition that: :that through which we have to pass" is the way we go through life. Jupiter is success or succession through time. Thus it is the key to Saturn.

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The Lights and Planets

Vision of Jupiter is Baptism or Rebirth Saturn is the test of time. Through our Jupiter, we overcome Saturn and awaken within time itself. This Jupiter awakening or awareness is like the crowning in childbirth of the head of an infant. It is our first glimpse or insight. It is baptism or complete immersion in spirit for the first time, and the resulting knowledge of faith: the message or spiritual word. Once we begin to awaken and get glimpse beyond Saturn, how we could solve our problems, we can have faith. Faith, no longer an endless round of waiting, but now a force itself more powerful than time, for through faith: we end all time. We begin to awaken to our more eternal life or awareness, our true self and, although still in the world of time (under Saturn), we have now with us a glimpse, that when it shall be made flesh and real for us, will set us free over and for all time. Once awake, we shall never again fall back to sleep in the total ignorance From Michael Erlewine

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The Lights and Planets of youth, from which we came, for our eternal memory has revived, stirred, and WE CAN NEVER FORGET. With the Jupiter chakra once open, we begin to rise above Saturn and become a warrior in the fight against our own ignorance, and wield time mortal blows as long as life lasts. We are now a warrior carrying the sword of faith that cuts at time's heart, and always opens Saturn's seal and, even now today, is forging ahead into eternity. The lightening quick sword of the once Awakened Mind that can never rest, but rides from victory to victory over time's rule. Jupiter is succession through all time. Jupiter is succession, continuity - simple continuing. Success.

Summary In summary, the key to Saturn is Jupiter. Each of us is born and grows up under Saturn, for Saturn provides the laws and structure for what forms us, at the very

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The Lights and Planets least, our body, and probably a lot of our habits. This is natural. We all go through it. But, at some point in our development, usually before the age of thirty, but certainly soon after thirty, each of us must find some way to deal with the circumstances and problems of our life, and this is usually accomplished by taking a vocation, which is nothing more than some way to make a living and learn to handle the demands of life. Jupiter is the planet of vocation. The Sanskrit word for Jupiter is "guru" or guide, and Jupiter is the guide or path each of us follows through the maze of Saturn. So what should you understand at this point? Hopefully, you have some idea of what represents the Saturn chakra in the world around you. Each person has their own set of circumstances, but all face the same type of problems. All have the Saturn chakra to negotiate, before life will go smoothly. Look around you, at your family, your friends and relatives, perhaps at yourself. If you want to do astrological readings, you will have to learn first of all to recognize what chakra each client is spending most of their time in.

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The Lights and Planets

Vocational Struggle? Are they struggling to make a living? Do they never seem to have enough time to get the basic facts of life sorted out? Are they lost in a sea of problems, monetary or otherwise? Are they clueless as to what to do to be successful? If so, you are looking right into the Saturn chakra, and it is a chakra that can involve a lot of suffering for the person locked in there. What can you do to be helpful? For one, you can begin to guide them and help them to learn to guide themselves, to find and invoke their own Jupiter. Forget about love and marriage, intellectual study, and all of the finer things of life. If a person is struggling to simply exist, there will be no time for anything else until their Jupiter awakening takes place, until they can subsist and sustain themselves - make a decent living.

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The Lights and Planets You can be sure, no matter what the client may tell you otherwise, that until their Jupiter is invoked, awakened, and they can take hold of the vocational reigns of their life, these other desires (love, marriage, friendship, intellectual pursuits, etc.) will never have time to come to much of anything. Sure, we all want them, but first things first. You must have the time (Saturn), and mastering time is the province of Jupiter, the key to time - the way to pass through time unharmed.

Natal Jupiter Therefore you will want to examine their natal Jupiter, using all the standard astrological indicators (sign, house, aspects, etc.), whatever you find that works for you. We learn in the Tibetan Book of the Dead, about reading to the recently deceased, whispering in their ear words that may be helpful on their inner journey. The

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The Lights and Planets chakras are just like that. All of us are relatively asleep and lost in one chakra or another. If we understand in what chakra a person spends most of their time, we tell them about (like reading to them) about the planet that is the key to that chakra. We each need to hear about what will solve our current problems, even if we think we want to be hearing something else. Sure, that new romance or new car may help you find the resolve to deal with your life and find some way to survive in the day-to-day rat race, but that is not probable. Rather than encourage you to marry or whatever you desire at the moment, it may be more helpful to tell you something that will help you manage what you have to manage - help to introduce you to your Jupiter. And reading to the ignorant is a lot like reading to the deceased, because we can find it hard to understand what we most need to hear. Otherwise, we would have understood it a long time ago, when it was first pointed out. It is most helpful to try to present the information that is the key to opening the next chakra for them, going over it again and again, until some spark of illumination occurs. One some basic insight has taken place, a glimpse into the future of the next chakra, the rest kind of takes place automatically. We have broken through into the next chakra or area of life, have found the key, and it is only a matter of time until we develop the insight into something useful. The person in the Saturn chakra has to learn how to manage time (Saturn), how to get things done, so that they are not at the mercy of circumstances. Each of us most solve this problem. That is what jobs and vocations are all about. This is Jupiter.

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The Lights and Planets

New Chakra Level Each time we manage to breakthrough into a new chakra, that chakra becomes the center of our life. We must make it our own, find our way around in it, and somehow master it, for it is everything we have been looking for - the answer to our current questions. It is not as if the previous chakra goes away, but rather that we learn to manage it and have learned how to master it. It is a lot like the different levels in video games. The previous levels don't vanish, but we learn how to master that level and it is no longer a problem for us. Chakras are much the same. Once we have mastered the Jupiter Chakra and know how to make a living, we have to keep doing that, but this becomes almost second nature. We have taken care of that chakra, and there is now room for other questions and needs to arise.

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The Lights and Planets Each chakra leads to yet another, more inner chakra, and mastery of an inner chakra automatically controls master of every chakra that is outer to it. In other words, if you master the Mars chakra, you must have mastery of the Jupiter chakra, and the Saturn chakra, which are external to it. One who has mastered an inner chakra to where we are now at appears almost like a magician to us, since they have the answers to all our questions.

Planet Chakras Although each of us has all the chakras available to us, and we have some (however fleeting) experience of each of them, it seems to be a fact that at any one time we spend most (or almost all) of our time in a particular chakra. For example, if you don't know how to make a living (right livelihood), then you will be, more or less, roaming the Saturn chakra until you can somehow unlock your

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The Lights and Planets natal Jupiter - the next planet inside Saturn. You get the idea. Since knowledge of these chakras is progressive, that is: we work in one until we graduate to another, it is very important that we learn how to determine which chakra a given person is in, at least for ourselves. This is not too difficult and, in terms of helping others, it does not matter whether we personally have a conscious experience of a particular chakra or not, although it sure does help. Luckily, at least for the outer chakras, there are signs we can read that will help us determine which chakra is active. Let's go over them, in brief.

Saturn Chakra A great many people you will meet will be stuck in this chakra, and having a rough time of it, at that. As for keywords or phrases, they are simple. Does the person have a job, and preferably a vocation that is more or

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The Lights and Planets less satisfying? If they have learned to make their way in life (have a vocation), then you can probably move to the next chakra (Jupiter) and start checking out keywords there. Life in the Saturn chakra is tough and what is wanted there are things as basic as some way to get through life, which may boil down to a job or at least way to make a living. If the person is trying to just keep their head above water, then the Saturn chakra may be where they are. They need to hear about the Jupiter chakra, for that is the key or way through the one that they are in.

Jupiter Chakra Those who live mostly in the Jupiter chakra have solved the equation of making a living, and have found a way to manage (handle) Saturn and survive. So, in the Jupiter chakra, simple survival is not what is needed. They have that and know how to manage their livelihood. With their vocation in place, they begin to From Michael Erlewine

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The Lights and Planets look around their life for something more than just making a living. They begin to pick up on the next inner chakra, which is the planet Mars - what moves us. Those living in the Jupiter chakra tend to be smart, skillful in manipulating life, and at able to think and use theirs head. These mental skills are common to them, so that is not what interests them, not what they value. Instead, what will interest those in the Jupiter chakra has more to do with meaning - what does it all mean? What is life really about? What is the purpose of life, beyond just surviving? They have learned to survive. They want more out of life. They want feel and be moved. As pointed out, life in the Jupiter chakra is very mental, clever, and pretty much devoid of feeling, devoid of meaning. Lawyers tend to spend a lot of time in the Jupiter sphere, because they are adept at handling the law (Saturn) - great manipulators. What drives the Jupiter chakra person is the wish to find meaning and sense - what it all means. They search through all the books and traditions ...

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The Lights and Planets

Jupiter Profile Let's profile a typical Jupiter chakra person: They are successful, at least minimally. They know how to survive in life, and to make a living. They tend to use their heads, to think, and may possess all kinds of manipulative skills. For example, they often are great students, very learned, and can show off those skills by being witty, clever, funny, etc. You get the idea. They tend to be good with words, great talkers. They would rather talk about it than do it. What is missing for the Jupiter chakra person is any deep motivation and feeling. They yearn for meaning and may spend most of their free time trying to puzzle out the meaning of life - searching. Most of all, they are lonely and either cannot find a partner or cannot maintain relationships.

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The Lights and Planets So, one of the earmarks of this chakra is that the person is not married. Marriage is beyond them at this point, something to yearn for and look toward. So, in a nutshell, the Jupiter chakra person is successful, but single, either unmarried, or already divorced. They have not found the inner drive and motivation to push them beyond mental gymnastics into the realm of real emotional care and feelings - marriage - which is the main sign of having entered the Mars chakra.

Mars Chakra And I am talking about a successful marriage (Mars), the same way we talked about being successful at making a living (Jupiter), not just dabbling in relationships. Please keep in mind that we are speaking, here, about the most common path or way these various chakras are encountered and mastered, not the only way. It is not uncommon, as we all know, to find some folks more-or-less happily married, but unable to get From Michael Erlewine

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The Lights and Planets their career in gear. They have it just backward to the usual way of things, which we all know from literature is: the young man first establishes a career, and then looks for a wife. It can happen vice versa, but this is not the recommended route. This is why, in the literature of chakras, there are all kinds of discussion as to the way the chakras are opened. But most of us open them in the normal order, from Saturn into the Sun, one by one. As pointed out, those in the Jupiter chakra yearn for a partner or, if their wish is not to marry at all, then at lest to bring an end to that yearning, by being married to their work or whatever they are moved to do in life. Mars is what moves us deeply, what drives us to search for unity or union or yoga. And the most common form of union (or yoga) is marriage. When we have a successful marriage, we have mastered the Mars chakra, not the easiest thing these days. And we should point out here, that each inner chakra is progressively harder to accomplish. There are fewer adapts on the inner chakras, than on the outer ones. Mars is all about following our inner feeling and meaning to its logical conclusion, which is experience itself - taking the plunge. Those active and successful in the Mars chakra have harnessed meaning, have made their marriage, be it to a partner or to their work in the world. They know what life means. So what do those in the Mars chakra go after. What interests them?

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The Lights and Planets

Earth or Heart Chakra The next planet inside the Mars orbit is Earth, as all know. If Mars has to do with feelings and emotions, what drives us, then Earth represents the very essence of meaning, the essence of what it all means. If the Mars energy is endlessly referring or driving us onward, then the Earth chakras is the very heart of meaning, and the end of referral. Earth is itself what it means. And here we are getting very subtle indeed. And this will be true not only for the Earth chakra, but for the chakras inside Earth, as well. The Earth chakra is the heart center, what has been called the Christ center itself, the "I AM THAT I AM," and for no other reason. We are done with reasoning (Jupiter); we are done with meaning (Mars). We become our own meaning. This is the point of life here on Earth or as the philosopher Hegel wrote: "We go behind the curtain of the Self, to see what is there, but mainly for From Michael Erlewine

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The Lights and Planets there to be something to be seen." In the Earth chakra, we become the answer ourselves, the end of our question... the end of any questions - quest-I-on. It is all right there in the words, "earth" and "heart." These two words have the very same letters, earth and heart. The earth stands balanced between the outer planets Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, etc., and those inside the earth, Venus and Mercury. These inner planets are just that: within or inside us. They represent our inner life. It has been written in the esoteric literature that we cannot see with our physical eyes beyond the Earth chakra, due to the blinding light from looking toward the Sun. The Earth chakra is, so it is written, where the crucifixion takes place for each of us, where we cease to search and ourselves become the answer to life's question. We become our own authority. No more references, no other meaning than this: I am that I am.

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The Lights and Planets

The Inner Planets Those who reach and master the Earth chakra become the mentors and teachers of the rest of us. You would think that each of us live in the Earth chakra, but that is not the case. While most of us learn to master the Saturn chakra (to make a living) by invoking our Jupiter, and many more master the Jupiter chakra and prove a successful marriage (Mars), fewer there are that master the Earth chakra and become miniature Sun/Earths shining in the sky for all to see and be guided by. Very, very few master the inner chakras, Venus and Mercury, and this writer can only describe very briefly what they are, having no real experience there myself. And what description I can offer will be very high toned, at that. We are talking about something beyond our experience, something we might find in saints and holy persons, which I am not. So: please bear with me. What follows is what I understand the literature has to say: From Michael Erlewine 436

The Lights and Planets

Venus, the Key to the Earth Chakra 6 The key to the Earth Chakra is Venus, the next planet inside earth's orbit. And this should not come as any surprise. Our poets, mystics, and philosophers have been telling us for centuries, in every way they can, that the key to life on Earth is love and caring, and that is the province of Venus, as we all know from Valentine's Day. It is all right there in front of us. Venus is the inner essence of the Heart and thus the Key to Earth. In the esoteric literature, Venus stands behind the veiled Sun of the Earth or Heart Center, and there is no material here. Venus is a rendering or loving of all that is - irrespective of the personalities. It is beyond the personal. The idea to understand here is that Venus is beyond the material world, which ends with Earth. There is no way to grasp through our material senses what Venus represents. We can only

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The Lights and Planets experience it as we come to know our inner self, as we, ourselves, find our inner sense of compassion and love. Venus is all the love there is, is the mother of love, and the Immaculate Conception, for it endlessly conceives in love, all that is. This great mother or spiritual force has not ever, is not now, and never will matter in this world, for it is itself beyond the reach of matter. It is the support or womb of all matter, the matrix. It is the uncreated or unborn cornucopia out of which all life endlessly pours, itself forever immaculately conceiving all life. It is total appreciation or Love. This planet is the key to our earth life and to our natal horoscope. It is the essence or divinity itself from Earth's viewpoint. In the Christian tradition, this chakra alone is the key and mother of Christ, forever giving birth to the Christ within us. It is for divine love that we pray and worship, for this love is the key to our life. Venus is divine love and compassion.

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Mercury - The Light of Love Very few words here, for this is where words come from. Mercury is the key to Venus, itself beyond even love. Mercury (called Buddha in Sanskrit) is the very Buddha - pure awareness itself. Mercury is the light of love, the pure light of eternal truth, the eternal corona, and radiance of the Sun center itself. Merury is the Voice and Direct Word of the Father itself sent forth - God's messenger, what we call the light of consciousness and awareness itself. Pure awareness. Words fail here.

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The Sun Center Itself We could say that the Sun is the key to Mercury, since it is inside Mercury, but that would not be correct. The Sun is the KEY not only to Mercury, but to all the planets, and to all creation. It is the center itself and only nothing can be said here. It was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be. We do not simply mean the Sun as we find it in our horoscope, for that is the representative of the Earth/Sun/Moon relationship. Here we mean the Sun as it exists in itself (timeless), itself the eternal messenger of all time. The sun represents the whole process of life, from alpha to omega. If I had to sum it up, I would have to say: "THE SUN IS SHINING" That's it!

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Esoteric Planets Diagram
The literature on esoteric astrology is filled with crazy diagrams, so I might just as well add a few of my own. This diagram does not follow strict astronomy or astrology, but it is intended to convey some idea as to how the planetary energies work in astrology. If it looks like nonsense to you, feel free to ignore it. What It Is This is what we could call the planetary sphere of life, involving a sphere-like object (mathematically called a torus) with a center channel running from the bottom to the top. The arrows indicate that the energy flow goes from bottom to top, and on around again - endlessly. Running up the center channel, much like images we might see of the chakras (but not in the usual order), are the planets, from Mercury through Pluto. The Lights, the Sun and the Moon, sit on the left and right sides of the

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The Lights and Planets diagram. They are not part of the channel, but together represent the whole process of life. This diagram represents in two dimensions a dynamic process. It illustrates the endless life process that is represented by the symbol of the Sun in its shining. The Sun is Shining. Each of the planets represents a particular part of this dynamic process, and even a brief study of the diagram should help to make this clear. Let's start with Saturn.

Saturn Saturn, the great master of form, provides the walls of the central channel, the resistance that makes it possible to feel anything, but also any obstacles that may confront us. Saturn defines the physical course we must all pass through in our lives, but not the course itself, our path. That is Jupiter.

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Jupiter Jupiter is our guide and the path through the channel, the actual course itself, the way through the walls of time (Saturn) which we must travel. Each of us has a different path, and Jupiter is the way we can go. But getting through that path depends on what drives us, and that is Mars. Mars Mars is the energy or push that drives this whole process, helping to urge us forward, and propel us through the channel and its course. What drives each of us onward can differ, it depends on what we care about and love, and that is Venus.

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Earth We are Earth, and stand between Mars and Venus. Venus Venus stands at the mouth of the channel, and has to do with what we care about, what we appreciate, and all that we can acquire and manage to draw around us. Venus acquires or gathers everything together, ready to pass into the channel. What we care about depends on our vision, what we can see and the ideas we have, and that is Mercury.

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Mercury/ 0396.JPG Mercury is the light of the mind, the ideas that come out of nowhere and from which all else will form and precipitate. Outgoing As things reach the limit of Saturn, at the top of the middle part of the channel, which is about 30 years of age, the building of our body has ended and the beginning of our spiritual awakening may begin. This is the province of the outer planets, and the planet that marks the end of the limits of Saturn is Uranus.

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Uranus Uranus marks the point where we break out or work free from the control of Saturn. Things go from being bound in a tight pattern, and open outward in all directions. Suddenly everything appears new or in a new light. Uranus sits just at the inside lip of the great channel. When the insights of Uranus become universal, so that all is new, we are into the planet Neptune. Neptune Neptune sits where the channel turns into the sphere, and therefore embraces the entire central channel, and includes within itself that from which it came. Neptune loves every last thing. When the Neptune sense of unity reaches the point where it is clear that the whole process is endless, then we reach Pluto.

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Pluto Pluto stands free of the channel and marks the fact that this process is not just a straight line (Saturn), not just a tangent (Uranus), not just an embracement (Neptune), but a very fine curve that wraps around the sphere, endlessly repeating this entire process, the "we are our own grandpa," sort of thing. Very sensitive stuff. Summary: The only purpose of this diagram is to point out that all of the planets work together as one great system, each with their particular role to play. In other words, there is only one continuous process taking place, and the symbol for this entire process is the Sun.

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The Aspects

The Aspects

Aspect Orbs As we have presented elsewhere, aspects are angular separations (in degrees and fractions of a degree) between any two bodies or points, be it the Sun and the Moon, Mars and Jupiter, Saturn and the ascendant, and so on. Aspects can range from zero degrees (conjunction) and on around the full 360-degrees back to the next conjunction. The farthest angular separation is 180 degrees, after which the angular separation between any two bodies begins getting smaller again. Using Full-Phase Aspect analysis, we have seen that the waxing Square (90-degree aspect) is not the same (in interpretation) as the waning Square (90-degrees aspect), but that has been covered in another section. Here is a diagram of the Sextile or 60-degree aspect, in this case "waxing," that is: the Moon is separating from the Sun, and moving toward the opposition. From Michael Erlewine 448

The Aspects

Standard Aspects Any degree of angular separation amounts to some aspect. However, over the history of astrology, certain particular aspects or angular separations have been considered especially significant, such as the Conjunction (0 degrees), the Sextile (60 degrees), the Square (90 degrees), the trine (12o degrees) and the Opposition (180 degrees). These are the so-called Ptolemaic Aspects, since they were used by the Greek astrology Ptolemy. Some astrologers add more aspects to the list, and the diagram above represents what astrologers consider the standard set of aspects. But that is not the point of this lesson. Here we want to take a look at WHEN is a particular angular separation considered an "aspect," and thus the subject here is one of "orbs." We know when an angular

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The Aspects separation is exact, so that is no problems. In other words, an exact trine aspect is 120 degrees, no more and no less. At that moment, there are no orbs. But the question here is: as we approach an aspect, at what point can we say that we are within reach or "orb" of the effect of that aspect? When does it affect us? As you might guess, astrologers agree to disagree when/where that point is. And astrologers use different orbs, depending upon which planet they are considering, and also which aspect they are considering, so it can get a little complicated. In this lesson, I will stay away from the extremes and just present what are the orbs most commonly used by astrologers. You are free to use any orbs you wish, of course.

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The Aspects Exact Aspects Astrologers appear to be in agreement that when aspects are exact, they are more powerful. Sometimes the analogy of a lens has been used to illustrate how an aspect works. Like focusing a pair of binoculars, as an aspect between two planets approaches its exact point, it resolves itself increasingly into focus. I believe that most astrologers would consider this resolution to be exponential, and not linear in nature, meaning: the closer you get to the exact aspect, the more powerful is its nature, exponentially. In other words, an aspect that is one degree away from being exact is not twice as powerful as an aspect that is two degrees away from being exact, but even more powerful. There is a sharp curve, and not just a straight line. Some astrologers might disagree, but this has been my experience. It is like focusing a lens.

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The Aspects Tight or Wide Orbs Now we are getting into disputed waters, when we ask what orbs should we use. Astrologers are just like people (in fact they are people), in that some use very fussy and tight orbs, while others consider anything remotely in the ballpark to be an aspect. Let's look at this. Astrologers tend to use different orbs for different purposes. When we are looking at a static natal chart, wider orbs are generally used, as we are trying to get an overall picture as to the nature of the person or event. On the other hand, if we are looking at today's transits in the sky, we may use much smaller orbs. The same goes if we are looking at today's transits in the sky as they relate to your natal chart, tighter orbs. For example, here is my helio natal chart. Everyone could agree that Venus and Neptune are within orb of a conjunction. Also, most astrologers would agree that Saturn is conjunct Uranus and Uranus is conjunct Jupiter, but few would agree that Saturn is conjunct Jupiter. However, Jupiter has recently completed a conjunction with Saturn, so it is not that far from a conjunction. And finally, some astrologers would say that Mercury and Mars are in conjunction (some 9 degrees), but most probably would say it is not, since Mercury is moving away from that aspect.

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Entering and Leaving Orbs When looking at transits in the sky or transiting aspects (in the sky) to our natal planets, most astrologers use fairly tight orbs, often as small as one degree. And the orb used extends before and after the aspect, one degree before and another aspect. For example, if we are looking at the sextile aspect (60 degrees), with a one-degree orb, then we would be looking for an angular separation between the two planets that ranges from 59 degrees to 61 degrees. However, astrologers have found that the effect of the aspect tends to precede the event, rather than follow it. In other words, from the orb before the aspect is exact to the point of exactness is when we most feel or experience the effect of that aspect, and not afterward. This is not always the case, but it is the general rule. The old astrological saying: "Coming events cast their shadows" is very true here. The time before an aspect, From Michael Erlewine 453

The Aspects what is called the "Entering Orb" is considered the most important. After the aspect is exact, and what is called the "Leaving Orb" is not so important, and usually is not given a lot of attention by astrologers. In the diagram, we are showing the point where the aspect is exact, and a 1-degree orb before and after that aspect. The red line shows how the importance of the aspect as it is forming or entering is much greater than the aspect after the "exact" point is reached.

Planets, Bodies, and Points 4 Different orbs are used depending upon what planets or bodies are involved. The Sun and Moon (The Lights) are the two most important bodies and wider orbs are generally used when working with them. Their influence is greater, and we make allowances for that, by giving them a wider orb. For example, with the Sun, we might use an orb as wide as 10 degrees, while using a 9-

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The Aspects degree orb for the Moon, and 7 or 8 degrees for the other planets. This would be when looking at a natal chart. If we were looking at transits (what is happening in the sky right now), using too wide of an orb would give us so too many transits, then the list of them could be longer than our attention span. What we want are manageable lists of things. Having a list of 200 aspects may be very nice, but how often are you going to sit down and count through 200 aspects, when all you want is a quick picture of what is happening today? So, in actual practice, we tend to limit our orbs and the list of aspects we use to something manageable, to what we will actually use, what we find helpful in day-today work. As I like to tell myself: I want astrological techniques that work for me, and not vice versa. There are thousands of possible techniques you can experiment with, but which ones give you back enough return for your investment in time to make them valuable to you? Each of us will have to answer that question, individually.

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Standard Aspect Set Here is a set of orbs for what might be considered the standard set of aspect most used by astrologers. Let's go through them. As you can see, the Sun and Moon get the widest orbs, in decreasing size, from the Sun, to the Moon, to the planets. And certain aspects (in particular the conjunction and opposition) deserve wider orbs. When any to planets are considered, such as, for example, the Sun and Mars, use whichever orb is widest for that pair. In this case, we would use 9 degrees for the conjunction aspect, if we were looking at the Sun and Mars. This table should be clear.

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Large Scale Patterns We have been considering what orbs to use when looking at planets in aspect, and more or less taking them a pair at a time, such as "Moon Sextile Venus," and so forth. More important than single aspects are aspect patterns. An aspect pattern occurs when various aspects link up to form a larger pattern than just a single aspect. In particular, when aspects link up and create a "Whole-Chart Pattern," they are of special importance. A whole-chart pattern is a series of aspects, linked one to another, that add up to 360 degrees. In other words, the extend all the way around the chart wheel. An example of whole-chart patterns would include such traditional patterns as the Grand Trine (3 trine aspects linked together), the Grand Cross (4 square aspects linked together), and the T-Square (an opposition, linked to 2 square aspects.)

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The Forest and the Trees In understanding aspects and their orbs, it is very easy to lose sight of the forest, because of the trees, and this is a very important point: The reason we look at aspects and aspect patterns is to see what is going on. Since astrologers today, for the most part, use computers, it is easy to set some orbs, and let the computer churn out a list of aspects. The problem with such lists is that once you set an aspect to a certain orb, you may exclude or be unaware of many important astrological events, without every knowing it. For example, if I set the orb for the Sun at 9 degrees, as we listed earlier, and I have the Sun and Moon with an angular separation of 9-degrees and 1 minute for whatever aspect they might be approaching, that aspect is not going to appear on my list, even though I need to

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The Aspects be aware of it. This is the danger or setting and forgetting orbs. There is no substitute for actually looking at the chart patterns with your eyes. Don't only depend on lists, or you will miss a lot that is important in the chart.

The Main Point Here While exact aspects are important, no doubt, of equal importance (or more important!) is to know about the angular relationship between any two planets. In other words, exact aspects are snapshots or moments in the larger cycle of whichever two bodies you are looking at. They are not the only thing to keep track of here. Let me give an example: If I tell you that you have Venus Square Saturn in your chart, that is something worth noting. But if Venus and Saturn are slightly out-of-orb... just beyond whatever orb you have set, they may not come up on your radar

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The Aspects screen, so you might not consider them. Here is the point: Regardless of whether Venus and Saturn are at the exact point of being square to one another, or even within orb, they are right near that point and are nowhere else. Any two planets are in aspect at all times, regardless of whether they are currently at one of the designated aspects (square, trine, etc.) or not. They are either before or after whatever the nearest aspect we are using. That aspect is about to happen (soon) or has just happened (and is over). This information is essential to know: where in the cycle any two planets are, regardless of exact aspects. The diagram here shows all of the major aspects, and you can see that no matter where you are in the cycle, the next aspect is never that far away.

Where In The Cycle?

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The Aspects If you only want to know when two planets are within orb of an aspect, you are missing a lot. Of course it is more important to know when an aspect is exact or nearly so. But it is also important to know even roughly about the relationship of any two planets. Where are they in the cycle of their relationship? This is what you should be asking. The point here is that the activity of any two planets or bodies does not just manifest at the exact aspect points. It is a process that is ongoing, and we can take a snapshot of that process at any time, not only when an exact aspect is reached. While orbs are very helpful in spotting the high points, we also need a general idea of where we are at in the entire cycle. For example, as aspect may be short of being called a square (90degree aspect), but it is more a square than it is anything else and you or your clients need to know this. For most of my work, which is with large-scale patterns, I don't look at orbs, but only at the patterns. A misshapen (out-of-orb) grand trine is still a grand trine and nowhere near being any other pattern. If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it's a duck. The same with aspects. Don't get hung up on exactness; grasp the whole picture.

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Full-Phase Aspects
Learning to use and keep the concept of full-phase aspects in mind can be made easy by going through the sixteen different phases one at a time, and understanding the interpretations. The following interpretations would work for looking at the phases of the Moon (Sun-Moon angle), or the phases of any two bodies - Mars-Saturn, Venus-Jupiter, etc. Most important will be to understand how each phases changes into the next and that the entire set of phases is just one continual cycle, with distinct points along the way.

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Conjunction - New Idea In a word, the seed impulse, pure potential. This is the most encapsulated moment, the most indrawn point, and the source of the vibration that starts a new cycle, that sends out a pulse, a new beginning, a beginning built upon results of the previous cycle. It is an idea in its purest or most direct form - pure thought. It is clarity, but very pure, and seminal. Above all, it is a new signal that is strong enough to overcome and rise above the past and assert itself. It cannot be denied. It will have its day. This is a vision point.

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Semisextile (waxing) - Planning Here a gentle push as the new idea or vibration grows and begins to spread out, making clear a sense of direction or flow from inward, outward. This is the planning stage, as the idea turns into a plan of action, and the wish to make this plan manifest.

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Semisquare (waxing) - Overcome Resistance Here some, perhaps token resistance to forward motion must be negotiated. It could be residue from the past, whatever might rise up and block passage to progress. It is to be expected, and since this is the waxing or outgoing phase, it is appropriate to push firmly forward at this point and wade through whatever it is that is resisting. This is not a place to back off or to take no for an answer. Gentle, but persistent, forward motion is recommended. This is a waxing phase or upswing, moving outward.

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Sextile (waxing) - Making Plans The first real burst of energy and perhaps the sense of being freed up, with space to move, and to make progress. This is a good point to move plans forward, and to begin to grasp what must be done or accomplished. The purity of purpose, and onepointedness makes sharing the vision communal, and co-workers easy to come by and to have solidarity with. There is a definite sense of "can do" and let's just go and do it. There is also the confidence and strength to put up with and to endure petty problems and hindrances that will get in your way, for the sake of accomplishing the greater goal and good. Self-sacrifice is easier here than elsewhere.

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Square (waxing) - Positive Start This is one of the four cardinal points, a transition or turning point, and in this case, one that is part of the waxing phase, good for moving forward, making a statement, and manifesting something new that is visible for all to see. This is the first step out of the planning or theoretical stage into the arena of action. Here something can be done and will appear. Positive.

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Trine (waxing) - Building Now past the starting point, here there is energy and space/room to really accomplish things, to build something solid. The actual embodiment of plans into something real is what takes place now, drawing around oneself whatever form fits the seed idea that you started with, that is being carried forward here and being made manifest. It is where we draw things to and around us. Possessions.

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Sequiquadrate (waxing) - Push On Another push comes to shove point, where various resistance or obstacles may appear on the path. This should not be a major problem, since we are already on a roll here, and so this is a point to press on, to push forward, and not one to withdraw or hold back. One has the control, energy, and forward momentum to push forward, the strength to overcome obstacles and blockage. Gaining control and confidence.

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Inconjunct (waxing) - Connect Up This is the last point at which to push forward, and actually any action or drive should be devoted to connecting things, to tying up loose ends, and bringing whatever is already in the works to completion. Not a time to start anything new or to push too hard. Finish it up, and use a light touch, at that. Connectivity. Exploration.

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Opposition - Result or Experience The result or full manifestation of whatever has been building up to this point is here. This is it, the full experience, the ride, whatever it can be. This is not a time to push, not a time to start anything new, and not a time to speculate or think. Rather, it is a time to savor the experience or more simply: to live it. The experience itself.

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Inconjunct (waning) - Dawning We are past the heart of the experience, past the opposition, and just far enough past so that there can be some awareness of what it was all about dawning, and coming to mind. We can begin to get a handle on what has just taken place, and perhaps have some sense of accomplishment and pride in a job well down, in the experience. Also, perhaps the desire to share or tell this to others, even to teach and explain. No more push. The secret here is to let things arise and come to you, rather than to push to get them.

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Sequiquadrate (waning) - Gather Things Another resistance point, but one that will not respond to further pushing. We are now on the waning side of things, so rather than push for what we want, we learn to respond, to give in, and to work with and manipulate what confronts us. We work things through us, in the sense of Aikido, helping things to pass, rather than confronting them headlong. Facilitation.

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Trine (waning) - Conservation A rush of useful energy, and enough space to use it in, but not the kind of energy for building things or driving forward. Rather, here is energy for removing the scaffolding, conserving, and hanging on to what you can from the current situation. Salvaging. The party is over and you are taking down the decorations, and saving what is significant.

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Square (waning) - Responsibility Another cardinal or turning point, this time away from the outside and toward the inside, away from the personal and toward the impersonal, impartial, and the objective. There is here a sense of responsibility, responding to what is - reflecting rather than initiating, managing a situation, rather than creating one. Reflection, mirroring.

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Sextile (waning) - Analysis An expansive time and increased energy, and the sense of being on the outside looking in. Here there are extreme critical faculties, and the ability to analyze and to criticize, seeing what should be kept and what can be pruned away - purging what is unessential. This is not a time to begin new things or to push, rather to receive, observe, and consolidate.

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Semisquare (waning) - Push In This is another of the four resistance points, what the Tibetans call the "Tomb Signs," where there may be some obstacle or blockage. The thing to do here is not to push forward or use positive force. Instead, negative force is required, giving way, rather than pushing forward. Make way and help the blockage to pass, rather than confront it. Step aside.

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Semisextile (waning) - Encapsulation This is a drawing down time, having removed what should be removed, retained what can be retained, a time to pack it in, and salvage what is essential, reducing it into its most compact form. Not a time to push, but one to consolidate. Building the kernel.

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Aspects Continued
As we have seen, cycles are a crucial part of astrology, and we find them in almost all of the main components, such as the cycle of the zodiac signs, the cycle of the Moon phases, the cycle of daily rotation of the earth, and so forth. The aspect cycle is one of the most important cycles to study, but there is an issue to discuss. Astrologers use a standard set of aspects that go from zero degrees of separation (the conjunction) to 180 degrees of separation (an opposition), the waxing half of the aspect cycle. So far, so good. Then they use the same set of aspects to measure from the opposition, on around in the circle of aspects, to again reach the conjunction, the waning half of the aspect cycle. Here is the problem: We use the same interpretation for the aspects on the waning half as we do on the waxing half. Let me be clearer.

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The Phases of the Moon As we have seen, cycles are a crucial part of astrology, and we find them in almost all of the main components, such as the cycle of the zodiac signs, the cycle of the Moon phases, the cycle of daily rotation of the earth, and so forth. The aspect cycle is one of the most important cycles to study, but there is an issue to discuss. Astrologers use a standard set of aspects that go from zero degrees of separation (the conjunction) to 180 degrees of separation (an opposition), the waxing half of the aspect cycle. So far, so good. Then they use the same set of aspects to measure from the opposition, on around in the circle of aspects, to again reach the conjunction, the waning half of the aspect cycle. Here is the problem: We use the same interpretation for the aspects on the

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The Aspects waning half as we do on the waxing half. Let me be clearer.

Which Side Are You On? To make it even simpler. Let's say I am cooking dinner and send you on a round of errands, a circular route that takes you past various stores and you are picking up some items for our meal. Since I live in Michigan and it is winter, perhaps it is snowing and I have no idea where you are on the route, so I don't know whether to start the peas or not. I call you on your cell phone and you tell me that you are on the route at a 90-degree aspect, one quarter of the way from home. Now your cell phone cuts out, and I don't know whether you are 90-degrees out and just getting going through all the snow or 90-degrees from home, and on the way back, in which case you will be here in a few minutes, and I should start the peas.

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The Aspects This kind of problem with aspects is true for all aspects, aside from the conjunction and opposition, which of course are directly opposite one another. When you say you have a sextile aspect or a trine aspect, I have no way of knowing which sextile or trine you refer to. One is a waxing or outgoing aspect, and the other a waning or incoming aspect, very different aspects and interpretations. Perhaps, in the past, it was enough to know that there was a square aspect. Period. But in the world we live in today, where every thing is monitored down to the microsecond, it is time to give a little more attention to the phase of the aspect we are looking at. Well known astrologers like Dane Rudhyar and L.E. Johndro have been pointing out this discrepancy for decades.

Full-Phase Aspects/ 0101jpg Full-phase aspects are identical to the aspects we have been using for hundreds of years, with a single

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The Aspects exception: with full-phase aspects, we not only give the aspect, but we also indicate which phase the aspect is in, whether it is a waxing/separating aspect or a waning/applying aspect. One marks two planets growing farther and farther apart, and moving toward the opposition at 180 degrees (waxing), while the other marks two planets growing ever closer together, and heading toward their next conjunction at zero degrees (waning). It is that simple. As for their interpretation, full-phase aspects are similar in most respects to what we have been using all along, but quite different in other respects. The general difference is that with full-phase aspects, we need to keep in mind the energy flow and direction of the two planets. With the waxing phase, we know the aspect is widening, and will continue to widen until the opposition is reached. It is open throttle and onward for these aspects. It is the reverse with waning aspects, the aspect between the two planets is narrowing, and will continue to narrow until the conjunction is reached. We are throttling back, at this point. Also of importance is the fact that with waxing aspects, we are moving toward the opposition, which represents the single greatest point of manifestation or extension for the two planets involved for the entire cycle. There is a definite sense of building up to this opposition, extending whatever qualities of the two planets involved, getting strung out. Conversely, after the opposition, the push is over, and the energy is withdrawing and scaling back. Here the sense is one of backing off and, just as the word, says: waning. As astrologers, we need to take this factor into consideration. Since I have a large astrological library at my disposal, I spent a good deal of time combing through the literature to see who were the champions of these full-phase From Michael Erlewine 483

The Aspects aspects. To my surprise, there were very, very few. Yes, there was some lip service to the idea of full-phase aspects, but no one followed through with any practice or even used the concept in their own work, at least in print. One of the strongest advocates for full-phase aspects, as mentioned above, was Dane Rudhyar, who was very clear indeed about the nature and value of looking at both sides of an aspect. Another was L.E. Johndro, who incorporated waxing and waning aspects throughout his work. In this course, we have provided you with full-phase aspect interpretations, as well as the more traditional aspect interpretations. Astrological interpretations can be very subtle, so any extra information can make a great deal of difference. Full-phase aspects provide you with that added information, which has to do with the general direction of development for whatever situation you are considering.

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Aspect Phase Keywords
The phases of any cycle are similar. Here we are looking at the phases of the aspect cycle between any two bodies, such as the Sun and the Moon. The faster body always aspects the slower one. For example, it is the Moon that aspects the Sun each month, as it travels from New Moon to Full Moon and back, and not vice versa. If we were looking at Mars and Saturn, then it would be Mars that starts from the conjunction of these two planets and moves out to the opposition, and back to the next conjunction. As you are learning about the various phases, it can help to chart out all the phases, using keywords. I understand that this is very dry and robot-like stuff, so feel free to skip over it. Once you get the idea, you can generate your own keywords for the various phases.

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The Aspects Here is a quick explanation of the various points we are listing: Aspect Name (example: the Conjunction) Motion: Either waxing (outward), waning (inward), or no motion. State: Either Inward or Outward Energy Point: Also called a "Push Point," where some kind of action may be required. Resistance Point: Where you can expect resistance or obstacles. Turning Point: Either inward toward outward, or vice versa (turning point at Conjunction or Opposition)... or inside to outside or vice versa (turning point at the two square points, from inside to outside, or vice versa). Keyword: The phase keyword.

Astrologer Michael Erlewine Entrepreneur Michael Erlewine, an internationallyknown astrologer, has studied and practiced astrology for over 40 years, as an author, teacher, lecturer, personal consultant, programmer, and conference producer. Erlewine pioneered computerized astrology, the first astrologer to program astrology on microcomputers and make those programs available to his fellow astrologers. This was in 1977. He founded the first astrology software company, Matrix Software, in 1978, and that company, along with Microsoft, are the two oldest software companies still on the Internet. Michael, joined by his astrologer-brother Stephen Erlewine, went on to revolutionize astrology by producing microcomputer software for the first written

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About Michael Erlewine astrological reports, first research system, first highresolution chart wheels, geographic and star maps, and on and on. Erlewine has a least two other careers. In the 1960s, he was a musician. He hitchhiked with Bob Dylan, was the lead singer for the Prime Movers Blues Band (Iggy Pop was his drummer), and opened for bands like Cream at the Fillmore in San Francisco, during the Summer of Love. An expert in blues music, Erlewine interviewed and documented dozens of blues musicians. He went on to found and develop the All-Music Guide, All-Movie Guide, and other major entertainment sites. He has developed astrological content under contract with MSN, AOL, and his companies have received scores of awards. Michael himself has received major awards from the American Federation of Astrologers, UAC (United Astrology Congress), and Professional Astrologers, Incorporated. Erlewine has written many articles and books on astrology, and is the curator of the Heart Center Astrological Library, perhaps the largest astrological library available to researchers. Michael has made two pilgrimages to Tibet, and is a practicing Buddhist. He has been married 35 years, has four children, and lives with his wife, Margaret, in Big Rapids, Michigan. He can be reached at: Michael@StarTypes.com.

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About Michael Erlewine

Michael Erlewine
Internationally known astrologer and author Noel Tyl (author of 34 books on astrology) has this to say about Michael Erlewine:

“Michael Erlewine is the giant influence whose creativity is forever imprinted on all astrologers’ work since the beginning of the Computer era! He is the man who single-handedly applied computer technology to astrological measurement, research, and interpretation, and has been the formative and leading light of astrology’s modern growth. Erlewine humanized it all, adding perception and incisive practical analyses to modern, computerized astrology. Now, for a second generation of astrologers and their public, Erlewine’s genius continues with StarTypes … and it’s simply amazing!”

A Brief Bio of Michael Erlewine Michael Erlewine has studied and practiced astrology for over 40 years, as an author, teacher, lecturer, personal consultant, programmer, and conference producer.

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About Michael Erlewine Erlewine was the first astrologer to program astrology, on microcomputers and make those programs available to his fellow astrologers. This was in 1977. He founded Matrix Astrology in 1978, and his company, along with Microsoft, are the two oldest software companies still on the Internet. Michael, soon joined by his astrologer-brother Stephen Erlewine, went on to revolutionize astrology by producing, for the new microcomputers, the first written astrological reports, first research system, first high resolution chart wheels, geographic and star maps, and on and on. Along the way Matrix produced programs that spoke astrology (audio), personal astrological videos, infomercials, and many other pioneering feats. Michael Erlewine has received major awards from UAC (United Astrological Conferences), AFA (American Federation of Astrologers), and the PIA (Professional Astrologers Incorporated), and scores of online awards. Michael and Stephen Erlewine have published a yearly calendar for almost 30 years, since 1969. Michael Erlewine has produced and put on more than 36 conferences in the areas of astrology and Buddhism.

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About Michael Erlewine

Example Astro*Image Card Aside from his current work as a consultant for NBC’s iVillage and Astrology.com, Erlewine has personally designed over 6,000 tarot-like astrology cards, making authentic astrology available to people with little or no experience in the topic. These Astro*Image™ cards are available through a variety of small astrological programs and in eBooks. Some examples can be found at WWW.StarTypes.com, where there is also a link to his astrological software.

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About Michael Erlewine

Personal Astrology Readings Michael Erlewine has been doing personal astrology readings for almost forty years and enjoys sharing his knowledge with others. However, his busy schedule makes it difficult to honor all requests. However, feel free to email (Michael@Erlewine.net) him if you wish a personal chart reading. He will let you know if his current schedule will allow him to work with you. The sections that follow will give you more details about Michael Erlewine and his very active center.

The Heart Center House In 1972, Michael and Margaret Erlewine established the Heart Center, a center for community studies. Today, the Heart Center continues to be a center for astrological and spiritual work. Over the years, hundreds of invited guests have stayed at the Heart Center, some for just a night, others for many years. Astrologers, authors, musicians, Sanskrit scholars, swamis - you name it, the Heart Center has been a home for a wide

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About Michael Erlewine group of individuals, all united by their interest in spiritual or cultural ideas.

Heart Center Library Erlewine also founded and directs The Heart Center Astrological Library, the largest astrological library in the United States, and probably the world, that is open to researchers. Meticulously catalogued, the current library project is the scanning of the Table of Contents for all major books and periodicals on astrology. The library does not have regular hours, so contact ahead of time if you wish to visit. Michael@erlewine.net.

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The All-Music Guide / All-Movie Guide Michael Erlewine's devotion to studying and playing the music of Black Americans, in particular blues, led to his traveling to small blues clubs of Chicago and hearing live, blues greats like Little Walter, Magic Sam, Big Walter Horton, and many others. He went on to interview many dozens of performers. Much of this interviewing took place at the Ann Arbor Blues Festivals, in 1969 and 1970, the first electric blues festivals of any size ever held in North America, and than later at the Ann Arbor Blues & Jazz Festivals. With their extensive knowledge of the blues music, Erlewine and his brother Daniel were asked to play host to the score or so of professional blues musicians and their bands. They were in charge of serving them food and (of course) drink. Michael went on to interview most of the performers in these early festivals, with an audio recorder, and later on with video. The interviewing led to more study and ultimately resulted in Michael founding and developing AMG, the

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About Michael Erlewine All-Music Guide, today the largest single database of music reviews and documentation on the planet. Erlewine started from a one-room office, and the reviewers and music aficionados of the time laughed at his attempt to cover all music. But he persisted, and the all-Music Guide appeared as a Gopher Site, before the World Wide Web even existed-a database of popular music for all music lovers. Over the years AMG grew, and the All-Movie Guide and All Game Guide were born, and also flourished. Later, Erlewine would create ClassicPosters.com, devoted to the history and documentation of rock n' roll posters, some 35,000 of them. These guides changed the way music was reviewed and rated. Previous to AMG, review guides like the "Rolling Stones Record Guide" were run by a few sophisticated reviewers, and the emphasis was on the expertise of the reviewer, and their point of view. Erlewine insisted on treating all artists equally, and not comparing artist to artist, what can be important, Michael points out, is to find the best music any artist has produced, not if the artist is better or worse than Jimmie Hendrix or Bob Dylan. Erlewine sold AMG in 1996, at which time he had 150 fulltime employees, and 500 free-lance writers. He had edited and published any number of books and CDROMs on music and film. During the time he owned and ran AMG, there were no advertisements on the site and nothing for sale. As Erlewine writes, "All of us deserve to have access to our own popular culture. That is what AMG and ClassicPosters.com are all about.” Today, AMG reviews can be found everywhere across the Internet. Erlewine's music collection is housed in an AMG warehouse, numbering almost 500,000 CDs.

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Heart Center Meditation Room Michael Erlewine has been active in Buddhism since the 1950s. Here are his own words: “Back in the late 1950s, and early 1960, Buddhism was one of many ideas we stayed up late, smoked cigarettes, drank lots of coffee, and talked about, along with existentialism, poetry, and the like. “It was not until I met the Tibetan lama, Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, in 1974 that I understood Buddhism as not just Philosophy, but also as path, a way to get through life. Having been raised Catholic, serving as an altar boy, learning church Latin, and all that, I had not been given any kind of a path, other than the path of faith. I hung onto that faith as long as I could, but it told me very little about how to live and work in this world., “I had been trying to learn the basics of Tibetan Buddhism before I met Trungpa Rinpoche, but the spark that welded all of that together was missing. Trungpa

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About Michael Erlewine provided that spark. I got to be his chauffer for a weekend, and to design a poster for his public talk. “More important, only about an hour after we met, Trungpa took me into a small room for a couple of hours and taught me to meditate. I didn’t even understand what I was learning. All that I know was that I was learning about myself. “After that meeting, I begin to understand a lot more of what I had read, but it was almost ten years later that I met my teacher, Khenpo Karthar, Rinpoche, the abbot of Karma Triyana Dharmachakra Monstery, in the mountains above Woodstock, NY. Meeting Rinpoche was life-changing.

Heart Center Symbol “It was not long after that we started the Heart Center Meditation Center here in Big Rapids, which is still going today. My wife and I became more and more involved with the monastery in New York, and we ended up serving on several boards, and even as fundraisers for the monastery. We helped to raise the funds to build a

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About Michael Erlewine 3-year retreat in upstate New York, one for men and one for women. “We also established KTD Dharma Goods, a mail-order dharma goods business that helped practitioners find the meditation materials they might need. We published many sadhanas, the traditional Buddhist practice texts, plus other teachings, in print and on audio tape. Years have gone by, and I am still working with Khenpo, Rinpoche and the sangha at the Woodstock monastery. Some years ago, Rinpoche surprised my wife and I by telling us we should go to Tibet and meet His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, and that we should go right away, that summer, and I hate to leave the house! That trip, and a second trip that followed some years later, turned out to be pilgrimages that were also life changing. Our center in Big Rapids has a separate building as a shrine room and even a small Stupa; pictures are shown below. I can never repay the kindness that Khenpo Rinpoche and the other rinpoches that I have taken teachings from have shown me.

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About Michael Erlewine Music Career

Michael Erlewine’s career in music started early on, when he dropped out of high school and hitchhiked to Venice West, in Santa Monica, California, in an attempt to catch a ride on the tail end of the Beatnik era. This was 1960, and he was a little late for that, but right on time for the folk music revival that was just beginning to bloom at that time. Like many other people his age, Erlewine traveled from college center to center across the nation: Ann Arbor, Berkeley, Cambridge, and Greenwich Village. There was a well-beaten track on which traveled the young folk musicians of the future. Erlewine, who also played folk guitar, hitchhiked for a stint with a young Bob Dylan, and then more extensively with guitar virtuoso and instrumentalist Perry Lederman. Erlewine helped to put on Dylan’s first concert in Ann Arbor. He hung out with people like Ramblin’ Jack Elliot, Joan Baez, The New Lost City Ramblers, and the County Gentlemen. In 1965, the same year that the Grateful Dead were forming, Michael Erlewine, his brother Daniel, and a few

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About Michael Erlewine others formed the first new-style band in the Midwest, the Prime Movers Blues Band. Iggy Pop was their drummer, and his stint in the band was how he got the name Iggy. This was the beginning of the hippie era. Michael was the band’s lead singer, and played amplified Chicago-style blues harmonica. He still plays. Erlewine was also the manager of the band, and personally designed and silkscreened the band’s posters, one of which is shown below. The Prime Movers became a seminal band throughout the Midwest, and even traveled as far as the West Coast, where the band spent 1967, the “summer of Love,” playing at all of the famous clubs, for example, opening for Eric Clapton and Cream, at the Fillmore Auditorium. As the 60s wound down, and bands began to break up, Erlewine was still studying the music of American Blacks, in particular blues. Because of their knowledge of blues and the players, Michael and his brother Dan were invited to help host the first major electric blues festival in the United States, the 1969 Ann Arbor Blues Festival. They got to wine and dine the performers, and generally look after them. Michael interviewed (audio and video) most of the players at the first two Ann Arbor Blues Festivals, they included: Big Joe Turner, Luther Allison, Carey Bell, Bobby Bland, Clifton Chenier, James Cotton, Pee Wee Crayton, Arthur, Crudup, Jimmy Dawkins, Doctor Ross, Sleepy John Estes, Lowell Fulson, Buddy Guy, John Lee hooker, Howlin’ wolf, J.B. Hutto, Albert King, B.B King, Freddie king, Sam Lay, Light-nin’ Hopkins, Manse Lipscomb, Robert Lockwood, Magic Sam, Fred Mcdowell, Muddy Waters, Charlie Musslewhite, Louis Myers , Junior Parker, Brewer Phillips, Otis rush,